A New Hero
by Triforce-King 1
Summary: An ever-changing story of a mysterious swordsman travling to Hyrule, only to become entwined in an epic quest! Featuring Noah and Reese, with the additional help of Pandi, Ric, Rose, and Roxy!
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One- The Wandering Swordsman Starts an Adventure?**

The warm heat of the sun shown down on the bright field as a lone figure walked across the grass. A watchman had seen him coming, and alerted the town. Bells rang as people shouted of his presence. One would ask of who could cause this much arousal in the people.

"Could it be Link, the Hero of Time?" they would whisper to each other.

"No…" would come the hushed reply, "He couldn't be… Link hasn't spoken to Zelda in years…"

"And if he was here too… where's Epona?"

When the figure drew near, they decided it was indeed not Link, but the new Swordsman everyone had been talked about. They were afraid, and hid. Castle Town drew silent in anticipation.

Not much had been known about this man. It was rumored that he kept his past a secret, and only told a few select people. This man's name was Noah.

A few children ran through the streets, and the kittens and pups hid with their masters.

People yammered on in hushed voices, "Where is his army…? I heard he had an army!"

"No… I heard he always traveled by himself… because people were too afraid of the danger…"

"Do think he's gonna try to recruit someone? That would be sooo exciting!"

"What do you think would happen if he and Link met?"

They continued on, and a few people emptied into the streets, curiosity overwhelming their fears.

Outside, Noah neared the gates…

"Ah, the great city of Castle Town!" Noah exclaimed as he reached the drawbridge. He stopped short, and listened. How odd… he thought. He was noticing something was wrong, very wrong indeed. The City… was silent! Absolutely silent! He slowly drew near, and when he did… he saw two figures emerging from the double doors.

Were they leaving, or were they waiting…?

He drew weary. Who were they? What did they want?

Noah slowly pulled his broadsword from a long leather sheath, and inched slowly across the wooden planks, water sloshing beneath.

When Noah got nearer, the smaller figure, a woman, stood muttering something. Her lips moved frantically, pointing a wooden staff in his direction. Noah raised his eyebrows.

He was close to running, or attacking her, but what kind of person would that make him? Plus, there was a tall, menacing male standing close at her side, his eyes narrowed. The woman's face was concentrated, and the man's was firm as he drew his bow.

Noah tried to take a step forward, but found that he could not. He yelled in shock as dark green vines shot up from the ground, entangling his legs. Noah writhed and tripped, hitting the bridge hard. He groaned as the woman stood still and slowly walked towards him, her boots thunking against the wood.

Noah struggled, trying to find a grip on his sword. When a shadow moved across his face, he looked up at the woman in a long white robe like cape, brown tights, small cream-ish colored dress, and honey blonde hair. She held in her right hand, a tall wooden staff with indescribable detail. She was beautiful, but not the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

"What do you want mage?" Noah spat. Her dark expression turned bright as a smile widened across her face.

"Food." She said simply.

"Food?" Noah demanded, an irritated tone in his voice. "FOOD?" The girl jumped at the sound of his anger. "You could've just asked! Now get me out of here before I change my mind about not killing you!"

Her mouth dropped, and then her eyes darkened again, and she slapped him in the face with her staff. Blood gushed from Noah's wound.

"What the hell was that for?" Noah demanded, blood dripping into his mouth. This small white-cloaked mage just managed to bind me with magic, and then beat me with a staff for food. Are they some sort of thug, or all just really hungry? He thought.

"That was for speaking so rudely to a lady!" and she released him from the spell. Noah stood and wiped his nose, his sword lying on the floor beside him. The man walked up behind the woman.

"That wasn't very nice Pandi…" His voice was deep and stern.

"Well you should have stepped in!" she yelled, stomping a foot. Noah looked between the two of them.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait… what's your name?" Noah asked, pointing at Pandi.

"Pandi," she said, her back towards him.

"It's a nickname," the man muttered, not taking his eyes off the girl. "And my name is Ric… Short for Ricky…"

"Which is short for Richard, I presume…?" Noah asked. Ric nodded.

"Now, Mr. Man-With-No-Food…" Pandi began, now turning to Noah, "we heard that you are a great swordsman and adventurer."

"And you see, it's quite boring here," Ric added.

Noah stared them and processed what they were saying. After a minute or so is face lit up and he said, "So you wish to join me in my adventures here, that's it! Well, I don't know really… it's really hard to maintain a band of people… and the supplies are quite heavy and expensive…"

"But sir, please… all of our lives here are dull… nothing ever happens… an adventure like this is _just _what we need!"

"Well… possibly… as long as you carry your own supplies, and have some fighting skill, I guess it would be alright."

"WOO HOO!" Pandi nearly screamed. She jumped forward and hugged Noah, which surprised him. Ric just smiled and put his bow back into its case. After they all settled down a bit, Pandi said, "Wait… you're not mad…?"

"No… why should I still be mad?"

Pandi was shocked, "I hit you in the face!"

"Don't remind me!" Noah grumbled, but with a smile on his face nonetheless. Pandi was shocked, and Ric took a step forward, and stretched out his hand between them.

"I don't support violence!"

"Ric… just shut up… You should've said something before I nearly broke Noah's nose!"

Noah was silent for a few seconds before saying with a little bit of "oomph", "ANYWAYS! Now first we need to head to the Temple of Time. The people I met at a village on the way here said it's an amazing building and a must-see attraction." Noah said, walking across the drawbridge. Ric and Pandi followed patently, finally falling silent.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two- The Rest of the Crew!

Castle Town: The most populated town in all of Hyrule, the center of Hyrule's commerce, and the home of Hyrule Castle. Today, in the middle of beautiful spring, the diverse people of this city were frightened by the rumor of an extremely powerful swordsman and adventurer coming to do some sort of business. Upon seeing him with the little white mage Pandi and the equally-mysterious Ric the ranger, the town disregarded their fears and continued their daily business. The plaza was filled in minutes with people running errands and doing business. Noah halted with amazement at the sheer number of people that appeared out of seemingly nowhere.

"What happened here? From outside the gates, it sounded like a ghost town, but now look at all this!" Noah almost yelled.

"Hey, pipe down a bit. Everyone was worried about this rumored traveling master swordsman, that's all. Now that they know you aren't trying to take over the town, they are going back to their daily business. ," Ric muttered without turning. He grabbed a piece of hay out of a cart, put the hay in his mouth, put his hands in his pockets, and continued walking. He turned to Pandi and muttered quietly, "We should take some of the back alleys to avoid the 'traffic'."

"But… that's where…" Pandi stammered, and she shot a grim look towards Ric.

"I know, Pandi. I'm hoping that having this guy with us might intimidate them," Ric told her quietly. He whipped his medium-length hair back to shape and took a right by the fountain, heading to the alley next to Bazaar.

"Is there something I should know about?" Noah shouted to the two, following their lead.

"Nothing!" Ric and Pandi shouted together. By then they were deep in the alley and away from the traffic. Pandi and Ric started to fall behind, letting Noah lead.

"Why am I in front? Shouldn't you two be showing me where to go?" Noah said, looking back.

"Just keep following the alley. The Temple of Time is at the end of it!" Pandi said quickly.

"Fine…" He muttered under his breath. They walked through the dark until they came upon two girls. One of the girls, whom seemed like the leader, was a tall and well-built woman. Her hair was long, dark, and held into a ponytail with two chopsticks. She was clothed in a simple dark garb and tan boots. Her two knives at her waist, and dark appearance showed that she was rouge. The other girl, a little younger than the other, had long white hair that ran freely, a simple tube top and jeans, and was equipped with, simply, a blade with a handle in a stealth. The two girls quickly spotted the group and pulled out their weapons.

"Who goes there?" The older woman said with a very assertive voice. It sounded fake.

"I am Noah, the traveling swordsman. Why do you ask?" Noah said.

"Well Noah, this is our alley. We demand payment to pass; otherwise your traveling days are over!" She said, twirling her blades. The other girl swiped at the air to intimidate him.

"How much is this payment? I may be able to scrape up a few…"

"One thousand rupees."

"Outrageous! Who would, nay, CAN pay for that?" Noah bellowed.

"Well you, if you want to pass safely. It costs extra for your friends there." The woman said with a smirk.

"I would rather kill you then pay that!"

"Oh, you've made your choice. Prepare to die foolish traveler!" The woman then took off with blinding speed towards Noah. Lucky for him, his training in the sword allowed him to quickly draw his blade and block her jabs to the chest it. He then used a simple disarming move to bash one of her knives from her hand. "Gah! How could I slip up like that?" She muttered.

"You try to act tougher then you actually are. Just by the remark you just made I can tell you are indeed a soft person inside, trying to live in a hard shell in this though environment." Noah told the woman as he deflected a few of her quick blows. She did, though, put a few scratches on him.

"What? Why would I need to act tough when I can just show you! You're just trying to make me angry so I'll be less of an opponent. Too bad for you, I do better under stress!" She said, launching more quick stabs and slices at Noah.

_She may be right. I, with my big broadsword, am no match for an opponent with a quick knife. I may just lose this fight!_ Noah though. He continued to block, his chivalry preventing him from preforming a counter-attack.

"Come on, tough guy! This is getting too easy! I'm getting bored!" The woman said. She then swung hard at Noah's sword arm, making him falter. She dropped her knife, and threw her fist square into Noah's face. The blow threw him back and forced blood to gush through his nose and tear ducts. He flew into a wall, creating a huge dent and blood to splatter out of his back.

_Ouch, this girl has spunk! She would be a great addition to my little group here..._ Noah though. The woman then walked up to Noah and thrusted her hand to him.

"C'mon, that was a good fight. You can go ahead and pass." She said. Noah didn't move at all. "Hey what's wrong? Don't die, man! The guards will be all over me if they find out I killed a man…"

Noah chuckled and snorted up the blood coming from his nose, all without bringing his head up. Then, he slowly came out of the dent in the wall and wiped dust off himself. He muttered, "Well thanks, and don't worry, a simple punch like that is nothing to me. Just knocked me back a little... Hey, would you and your friend like to join me on a tour through this land?"

The woman gasped. "Really? Just after I kicked your ass, you have the nerve to ask me to wander around with you? You don't even know my name! And by the way, I hardly hit you there."

"It doesn't matter to me. Your skills are amazing, and I can feel that your friend over there is just as good."

"Well, I guess… I don't see any problems with us joining you… My name is Reese, and over there is Rose. Glad to meet you!"

Rose waved gleefully, unscathed by the fight that occurred, and said, "Hello!"

"Now let's go to the Temple of Time. I keep hearing how amazing it is." Noah said with a smile, and all together they headed out of the alley.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three- Inside the Temple of Time

It was sunset in the small city of Castle Town. The warm spring air had a relaxing tone with it, as everything was settling down for the night. In the shadow of the astounding Temple of Time, with its intricate steeples and mosaic artwork that make it the most eloquent building in Hyrule (all other buildings are pretty boring, besides the castle) anyway, in its shadow lie a very powerful and skilled group of people. There is Noah, Pandi, Ric, Reese, Rose. They decided to take a quick rest after Noah's loss to Reese.

Noah then stands up, stretches his arms into the air and says, "Ok everyone lets head inside." The group groans, but follows his lead. They all stop at the front doors and look up on the building. The light of the sunset reflects perfectly off of the windows and the artwork. "What an amazing example of oeuvre." Noah mutters with a grin.

"Amazing example of _what?_" Rose asks, confused.

"_Oeuvre," _Noah tells her, emphasizing the syllables.

"Oh, never mind you and your fancy words," Rose sighs, "Let's just go in."

"Hold on," Reese says, still looking at the temple. "Do you even know the legend behind this temple, Noah?"

"No, I just heard it's really cool."

Finally taking her eyes away from the shrine, Reese turns toward the group and says, "Why don't you all head inside. I'm going to explain the legend to Noah." The group murmured and walked through the doors. Noah and Reese relaxingly sprawled themselves out on the steps and faced each other. They sat staring for a minute, until Noah spoke up.

"Ok, the legend?"

"Oh yea. Well it's a little long, are you ready?"

"All set."

"Well then, I'll start with the creation of Hyrule. Now I learned most of this stuff from alley people, because some of it is information only the royal family is supposed to know. Don't ask about that."

"Okay then, get on with it!" Noah almost yelled, getting a little frustrated.

"Shesh, don't get angry or anything. Well, it all started when the three goddesses, Din, Farore, and Nayru, came down to the chaos that was Hyrule. There, Din, goddess of power, created the initial land we live on today. Next, Nayru, goddess of wisdom, gave law to the land, like light and dark, right and wrong, and so on. Third, Farore, goddess of courage, came and created life to uphold the laws of the land. When their work was done, they shot up back into the sacred realm from whence they came. At the spot where they re-entered, the Triforce was created. The three triangles all represent different things. The top represents Din, or simply power. The bottom-left has Farore, or courage. Lastly, the bottom-right represents Nayru, or wisdom. The Triforce has the ability to grant any wish of the person to touch it, and then it shapes Hyrule as the heart of the holder is. If the person has a kind heart, Hyrule will become happy, prosperous, and fertile. If an evil heart has the Triforce, the land itself will become evil, dry, and overall bad. Now the Temple of Time was built to protect this gateway to the sacred realm. The temple itself has three lines of protection. First are the three spiritual stones that are guarded by the different races in Hyrule. Next is the Door of Time, which can only be opened by the Song of Time, which is only known by the royal family, played on the ocarina of time. Lastly, the entryway is sealed by the Master Sword, a powerful blade that has the ability to vanquish evil, and it can only be drawn by the Hero of Time, who at the moment is Link."

"… Wow…" Noah sighed, almost asleep. He stretched out completely, and then stood up. "That's a lot to take in… Guess we should head in now. Twilight is almost upon us and they must be sick of waiting for us."

"Yea, your right. That took longer than expected." The two then walked through the huge doors, into the temple.

The inside of the building was not as magnificent as the exterior, but all-in-all it was nice. The floor has a checkerboard pattern, and the walls were made of placed stone blocks with support beams. Near the entrance was a strange raised section of the floor with a weird insignia. There was a fluffy red carpet with frilly sides that led from the entrance to a table at the other end of the room. This table was a stone slab, built into the wall and topped with a strange chunk of red rock. In it there were three dips and an inscription in a strange writing. On earthier side of the table were small stairs, leading to a raised platform, and that led to a huge stone door that was decorated with a Triforce. Above that was another Triforce, but in a darker shade.

Now as for the group that headed inside, they were as strange as normal. Rose was patiently studying every part of the temple, and now was at the Door of Time. Pandi was chasing Ric around the entire temple, screaming, "Nya!" all the while. Ric continually uttered a high pitched scream whenever Pandi got close to him as they ran around. When the doors slammed behind Noah and Reese, Ric paused for a moment and gave Pandi the opportunity to tackle him.

"Noah and Reese please don't ask…" Ric said as he was being smothered by Pandi.

"Oh hi you two! Took you long enough! I've looked at every square inch of this place," Rose exclaimed, running towards them, "by the way, the 145th tile and 72nd tile are lined up, and the 101st tile is about 2 inches too far to the right."

"Yea yea, good to know," Noah remarked, noticeably uninterested, "Wow this place is really... boring."

"Yea, not so amazing inside. All the really nice stuff is locked behind the door." Reese said.

"Well then we should go take a look!" Noah yelled, running forward, grinning dumbly and not paying attention to anything.

"Noah! Wai- oh never mind…" Rose and Reese said together. Noah continued running on the carpet, when he accidentally tripped over Ric and Pandi and slammed his face into the stone slab. Blood leaked from his nose.

"Oh shit that hurt!" he yelled, wiping and nose. Rose and Reese both had their mouths wide open, and were looking at Noah with a girl's that-was-really-dumb look. "Okay, let's just forget that ever happened."

Noah then ran up the stairs and faced the Door of Time. He gazed upon it with great interest, and continued to stare at it until everyone gathered around him. Pandi was still clung onto Ric's back.

Without warning, something strange happened to the Triforce on the Door of Time. It began to faintly glow dark blue, and it grew stronger every second. Everyone gasped and leaned back. Soon, the light was a beam, shooting across the room and reflecting onto the door. Unexpectedly, the Triforce began to spin! It spread apart slightly, and then made a 360 degree turn before coming back together. When that was done, the ground shook violently, and the door began to open.

"How is this happening?" Reese shouted so everyone could hear her over the rumble of the door, "The Door of Time is only supposed to open when the song of time is played…"

Nobody seemed to pay attention to her; they were focused on the mysterious light of the legendary door, now opening without its proper rituals. Once the door was fully open, the smaller Triforce above the door also began to glow. Noah began to slide forward, as if drawn by some invisible force. The rest of the group followed, eager to see what would happen next.

The Door of Time led to a short but wide passage, and that opened into a gigantic room with only one thing in the center of the room. It was a platform with three stairs that led to a pentagonal landing, and that had more stairs that led up to a hexagonal landing. There, a dark Triforce was marked into the ground, surrounding a small grey pedestal. Placed within that pedestal was the one and only Master Sword. It had a purple handle, with wing-like ends on the hilt. The pommel was a simply a purple-metal piece with a tiny Triforce in it. The blade was crafted of perfect steel and other mysterious metals.

Noah continued to walk toward the sword, while the others stopped about halfway. As he walked up the steps, the first three mysterious symbols began to glow blue. Then, as he moved up the last steps, the other three symbols and the Triforce dully began to glow the same blue. The group watched in awe as Noah began to reach for the sword, and everyone was too amazed to make any comments.

Now the moment Noah grabbed the handle of the Master Sword, the most amazing thing happened. All the symbols, including the Triforce, shined the same way as the Door of Time did. The whole room glowed mysteriously blue. Noah cried out in agony, and everyone else yelled out in fear. Noah reeled back, but did not go down the steps. Even stranger, parts of his body began to chip off and fly upwards in the light. This continued until all of Noah's body had disappeared, and his cries faded into nothingness.

Pandi was the first to react fully. She began to weep loudly, and then ran towards the light.

"Pandi! Stop!" Ric yelled, but it was too late. Pandi smashed against the light as if it were a wall and flew back as if she were tossed by a huge monster. She slid through the dust, until she mustered the strength to try again. The same thing happened, but this time she stayed sprawled out on the floor, obviously unconscious.

Ric then reacted by drawing six arrows from his quiver and firing them simultaneously at the light. Each one had the same effect as Pandi and shot back at him. Two caught the ends of his shirt, two hit the extra fabric on his pants, and the last two grabbed the extra cloth on the arms of his shirt. He flew back and smashed his head on the wall, making him drop his bow and causing him to black out.

Reese was now blind with rage, so she grabbed her two knives at threw herself at the light. She swung her arms wildly at the barrier, tears flying from her eyes as fast as the incoherent insults flew from her mouth. Her blades had no effect, but she did not get flung back. Suddenly, when both of her blades made contact at the same point, the barrier shot Reese back into the wall, and a crashing noise echoed through the room. No blood showed, but it seemed like some would well from that sort of contact with the wall.

Lastly, Rose quickly drew her sword and lunged at the light. She through all of her anger and sadness into the thrust, and it was enough to force her weapon through the light. Rose was filled with joy, but it was short-lived. The blade then spun 180 degrees before firing back into the wall, driving itself deep in the stone. Now filled with more anger, Rose turned and punched the light with all her might, only to hear a large _CRACK!_ and to be shot back. Amusingly, her broken hand grasped the handle of her sword, so it looks like she was thrown back with in.

The lights dimmed in the room, and the only sound you could hear was the short breath of the group passed out around the room. A new moon shone through the large window in the room, and everything was shrouded in a dark shadow.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four- …?

_Swoosh….Swoosh…swoosh… Water?_ Thought Noah. _I thought I was in the temple…._ He began to open his eyes. He was facing up towards a light-blue sky. The sun gently touched his face. _I feel, different… stronger almost... _He began to rise off the ground, onto his feet. After looking around, he was amazed at the environment he was in.

It was a tiny island, surrounded by clear blue water. He was standing on a small sandy beach, the only sand there. All else that was a bit of grass, and an average tree.

Noah looked down at himself to dust off sand, only to notice his environment was not the only thing to have changed. His luxurious coat had now changed to a thin grey shirt, wrapped in belts, and a decorated cloth hanging down from his pelvis to the floor. His pants were now light grey, and his knee caps and shins were covered in plate-armor, along with his new black boots. On his shoulders were decorated iron shoulder-guards that held up his new cloak. This cloak started as a hood, and waved all the way down to become torn along its bottom. On his hands were fingerless black gloves. His hair had even changed to be longer, and it was now white.

When he felt to his backside, he found, most likely, the most amazing part of this transformation. There, was a long (about 5 feet) broadsword. It had an engraved handle, small steel pommel, simple hilt, and an incredibly sharp blade, being wider near the hilt then at the tip. The stealth for the weapon was position perfectly for him to draw with his left hand, which he found to be more comfortable now.

In all the awe of his new body, Noah did not notice the old man, donned in simple dark-orange robes, appearing from behind the tree. The man advanced slowly towards Noah, smiling under his long white beard.

"Hello there," the man said, raising his had in greeting.

Out of instinct, Noah quickly drew his sword and pointed it at the strange man. As quickly as he drew it, he began to fumble with its unfamiliar weigh.

"Ho ho ho," the man laughed, "I see you enjoy your new body and weapon. Be careful though, that thing is much more powerful than your older weapon. Heavier too, by the looks of it!"

Giving up on trying to look intimidating, Noah simply dropped the sword, raised both his hands in surrender, and said, "Who are you, and what happed to me?"

"Oh lower your hands boy, no need for that. I won't hurt you. For my name, you may just call me Sage. You were brought here when someone with great potential touched the Master Sword before Link."

"Potential… what do you mean?"

"Have you heard of the legend of the 7 sages, whom together with the hero of time sealed away the great evil that terrorized Hyrule? Well that great evil is returning, and I have predicted it is coming back with another evil force. I sage, along with the 6 other sages, have decided that even the Hero of Time is not powerful enough to defeat the evil that is going to plague the land. You, along with your friends, were the only ones powerful enough to activate the Door and the sword without using the Ocarina of Time and the Spiritual Gems."

"So I was granted with this body to defeat an evil for a land I have just arrived in?"

"Indubitably."

"I guess if we are chosen, we must obey… Have I been changed in any other ways?"

"Oh yes, but our time wears thin. My power wears this as we speak, and I still need to get you out of here. The only this I can tell you, is that you have incredible power locked within your mind!"

At that moment, a blue light appeared underneath Noah, the same sort of light that appeared in the temple. Through Noah's eyes, the island world began to blur. He cried out, "Wait! What do you mean "power in my mind"? And where do I need to meet this evil?"

"My best advice is to meet with the king and ask to meet with the head guard. Then head to the Kokiri Forest! Tell the king "_sages mihi condeco tutela!"_

There was a bright flash of blue, and the world disappeared in front of Noah. He had the sensation of falling down. _What have I gotten myself into? _He thought.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five- A Mysterious Encounter!**

_Message from the author:_ Just wanted to let anyone who reads my Fanfic know that I'm going to borrow a few elements of writing from one of my friends, TheRoadtoDawn. Mainly, I'm going to use their technique of changing perspectives. Thanks, and enjoy the story!

**Third Person**

Darkness had engulfed the sword chamber, as a new moon hung to the grand window. The time seemed to stand still as… well… everything remained still.

In an instant, the same blue light that whisked Noah away began to return. It started as a thin, blue line, growing in diameter over a period of time until it was the same size as the monument in the center of the room. Once at full size, a body began to materialize in front of the Master Sword. It was unmistakably, Noah's new form.

**Noah's View**

"Blue...empty blue void… that's all I've seen for almost an hour… stupid universe travelling…." I mumbled, finally seeing the void dissipate. The familiar sight of the Master Sword in front of me made me sigh… I was finally home. As the last specks of blue vanished, I reached out to touch the master sword, only to cringe back, remembering what happened last time I touched it. Then I noticed the silence. _Where is the rest of my party? I swear they were behind me… _Glancing around, I noticed to my left, Ric was pinned against the wall. _What in the hell happened here? _

**Third Person**

Noah ran to Ric, seeing Reese, Pandi, and Rose also sprawled out on the floor. "Ric! Ric! Wake up!" he yelled. Ric lifted his head slightly, and his eyes screamed pain and amazement.

"Noah… Is tha…that you? We… we saw… you disappeared…" Ric managed to moan. Noah then began to yank the arrows from the wall, quite violently, and caught Ric before he fell.

"Ric, buddy, what happened here?"

"When you touched the sword, a blue light took you, and we tried to help. Pandi lunged in first, but no cigar… it flung her back, as it did my arrows. After that… I have no idea. I blacked out instantly when I hit the wall."

"Wow… well I'm OK, as you can see. You go get Pandi, I'll get Reese. Rose looks like she got hit the worse, we'll all need to help her."

"Agreed"

**Ric's View**

_Wow, Noah has really changed… he seems, more powerful… and wise…_ I stopped thinking about it; I need to take care of my duties, not worry about whatever happened to him. _Luckily, Pandi was only thrown back…. _I walked over to her and knelt down. "Pandi, get up. Noah is back."

"Mmmhhmm…" she muttered. I became quickly annoyed.

"Get up. Now. It's not nap time, Pandi. Let's go." I slapped he cheek lightly, apologizing at the same time. Not a good idea on my part. She launched herself up like a strung arrow, grabbed her staff, and clonked me in the side of my head. My vision blurred for a moment, and I felt a light trickle of blood. "What the heck was that for?"

"I should be asking the same thing! You don't slap a lady! You heard me mummer before, correct? You deserved that…"

I sighed, my vision clearing, "Whatever. Noah's back, he's over there helping Reese. He wants us to go help Rose."

"OK. Let's go."

**Reese's View**

_What... just... happened...? Ugh, my head throbbed with enough power to put tears in my eyes, and all I saw was darkness… endless darkness... It all happened too quickly... Noah, Noah just... and the light... what was that light... and the power... it felt so strong... I groaned. My entire body ached, like I had been trampled by a horse. Ugh, Noah, if something bad happened, I'm going to kill you...you better be okay... _

_ It feels like I've been drifting… in the endless darkness… just effortlessly… and for far too long. Wait, I… I think I see a light… but I hurt too much to move… _

"Re…Reese? Are you…You need… up now…please… Reese…"

_Was that Noah? I feel… suddenly… strong enough to move…_

_ "_C'mon, you need to get up… your stronger then this… please wake up…."

_His voice was getting stronger, it was definitely him. I moved faster towards the light. "How can I tell you I'm not dead?"_

_ The light Flashed and pulsed around me… I could feel the floor… I tried to sit up… why does my chest feel wet?_

**Third Person**

Noah was hunched over Reese's body, tears dripping slowly from his eyes, but his expression was hidden by his hood. It wasn't until he sat straight up that Reese lurched forward for a split second. Noah instantly extended his arm to keep her from falling again.

"Reese! You're alive!" Noah shouted in relief. The girl's eyes fluttered for a moment before she opened them completely. Her expression was one of shock as she looked into the man's eyes. She punched him, shrieking. He fell backward as she recoiled, a look of utter disgust on her face.

"Who the Hell are you?" she hissed through her teeth.

"It's me, Noah!" he said in shock.

"I don't believe you," she said, her eyes narrowing. She looked like a snake, coiling for a spring.

"I was changed, Reese. The Sages transformed me. I'll explain later. Just trust me." He extended his hand, which Reese grabbed hesitantly.

"You met with the Sages?"

"As I said, I'll explain later." Reese looked unsure, but slightly convinced.

"Well… ok, I trust you. Not like I have much choice." Noah giggled at that. "Did you really just giggle?"

"Only real men giggle, duh." They both laughed for a moment, and enjoyed every second.

Ric and Pandi glanced over at the laughing pair. "So much for everyone helping…" Ric muttered. Him an Pandi were hunched over Rose's limp body.

"Oh, quiet Ric, can't you see? They…" Pandi trailed off.

"They what?"

"Shhh…I'll tell you later, when Rose is awake and ok. Can't you see her hand? The flanges are obviously broken. She needs a doctor…"

"Aren't you a white mage? Use some of your healy magics."

"I can mend skin, not bone. Just help her up." Ric sighed, but obeyed. "And don't slap her like you did me, or you'll be getting hit in a worse place then your face…" Ric cringed at that.

Right before Ric managed to lift her, Rose groaned, and started to lift herself off the floor using her bad hand. She yelled in pain, fell back, and caused Noah and Reese to look in her direction.

"What… what happened? Why does my hand hurt so much?" she said to Pandi.

"Well, I was knocked out… but it appears as though you broke your hand."

"Oh nice…" Ric returned to helping Rose. It took a few minutes, but she was finally able to stand.

Noah and Reese joined the others and discussed what had happened. Each told their experiences with light, and Noah informed them about his discussion with Sage. Once he finished, the room grew dark… much darker than normal. They all turned towards the Master Sword.

**Noah's View**

"So everyone is on the same page now?" I said, smiling. I can't take talking this much, I hardly ever do it, and so it gets uncomfortable when I need to explain something long and boring. My mouth is dry, my teeth hurt, and my whole throat is sore. _Something feels different though… maybe my head is still spinning…_

"Noah, is everything alright?" Reese said, staring at me. Turns out, I was spaced out, and was staring up at the ceiling, the slightest bit of drool dripping from my mouth. I wiped my mouth with my sleeve, shook my head, and looked back at the group.

The room seemed to darken around me, just a small bit at a time. It wasn't long until I could not see but a few feet in front of me. The rest of the group seemed to take notice too. "Something really creepy is going on…" I muttered, but nobody seemed to hear me.

They all looked around for a moment, but everyone one of them just shrugged it off, like they though it was just getting later. Well, everyone but Reese that is. She was looking at me, almost scared of what was happening._ You feel it too? The evil energy? _I only though that… no need to startle the rest of them. They just kept chatting away… and giggling… something about what hospital to go to… _How can you have fun choosing a Hospital!_ I only said that in my mind too… I quietly slinked away, into the darkness…

_*sssSSSsss* _I heard something, like a snake slithering on the ground. It was so dark… I could just barely see the rest of them. Reese was walking towards me though… _Goddesses she looks beautiful in that outfit… I need to keep it professional though… I can't "come onto" her just after seeing her for a day…_

"Noah, something is really wrong here. I've never seen it get this dark before… not even in an enclosed building." She said to me, getting a little… close. I could feel her body against mine. I knew it was just so she could see me properly… but I felt… safe to say, I liked it.

"I know… hey, did you hear something a few seconds ago?" I said, checking to see if I was just going insane.

"Yea, it sounded like a snake… what do you think it was?"

"Well-" I started, but was cut off. I felt something cold and smooth shoot up my pant-leg, and wrap around my bare skin. It was so cold; it stung my skin like a bee. It was hard to tell, but it felt like I was flipped upside-down. By the nearby screams, I could tell the same had happened to everyone else.

"AAAAHHH," Reese screamed out, almost directly into my ear, "What in the hell is going on!"

"How would I fucking know?" I yelled, a little too loudly. Reese grew quiet at that point, and I could tell I hurt her feelings a little. Before I could apologize, Pandi began to scream.

"HELP! I can feel it wrapping around my whole body! It's squeezing my so hard, I can feel the blood! Ack! Oof," She continued making strange noises, before a loud _snap_ rang out through the room, and she yelped faintly, "My spine! My ribs! Crushed! "At that point, her voice faded away, and small drips were heard falling to the ground.

"Pandi, no!" I heard Ric yell out. His voice was quickly muffled, and I heard something large fly through the air and hit the wall, like a sack of potatoes. _ I hope he isn't knocked out again…_

As suddenly as that happened, I heard Rose also scream out. "It's got me now! AAAH! HELP! I can feel it up my-"and her voice stopped there. I could hear a few more small drips and a splash upon the floor. The same deadly force that took Pandi had just taken Rose as well.

I could _feel_ Reese lash out she was doing it so violently, and that she was so close too. "Rose… Rose? Are you still there! Rose! ROSE! You couldn't have… but you're my partner… no… NO!"

"Reese… she's gone…" I tried to tell her as sympathetically as I could.

"But she can't be…" I was so upset I couldn't do anything to help, but the blood from my feet had flown into my fingers, and I couldn't move them. Out of the blue, the strange force that had picked Me, Reese, and Ric, now brought us together. There was a dim flash, and a rumbling noise, like far-off thunder.

"Aha… The sacrifices have been made… Darkness can now reincarnate me…"

"Who are you?" I yelled.

"Who am I, you ask? Ha-ha… you amuse me… I guess I could tell you…"

"C'mon! Tell us your name so I can tell you too personally to beg for mercy when you face-"I retorted, lashing out a bit as I did.

"I, my little "heros", am the most evil person in all of Hyrule. I took control for 7 years in the past, only to be stopped by a stupid _child!_ I am the wielder of the Triforce of Power… I am, Gannondorf! And I am now filled with pure darkness from the Evil Realm!"

It's hard to remember what happened after that, as the last thing I remember is being thrown out of the Door of Time and hitting a nearby pole. The last thing I heard was, "It is too early for us to face now… you will first taste the power of my army of darkness… They will spread evil all across the land once more… good-bye for now…"

_**Sorry to leave you hanging there, but I felt like the chapter was getting a bit too long. More is coming up in a *hopefully* soon chapter 6! Thanks for reading!**_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six- The Toll of Gannondorf**

**Third Person**

Gannondorf, still in the sword chamber, had now taken his full original form, only his cloak was colored black, instead of red. The tendrils of darkness recoiled to him, most of them still covered in blood. He embraced them, hugging them as if they were his own children. He took one more glance towards our heroes, once again sprawled on the floor, before bounding up into the darkness, where he vanished.

The night passed, and the sun gently peaked through the window above the doorway. Simultaneously, Ric, Noah, and Reese all began to regain consciousness. Noah was wrapped halfway around one of the pillars, and Ric and Reese were simply lying on the entryway carpet. Small traces of blood could be seen throughout the corridor, but it was impossible to tell whose it was, for everybody was covered in small cuts and tiny gashes. As Noah stood up, small crackling noises could be heard, for his spine was re-bending into shape.

Noah grunted, "Is everyone alright? That hurt like hell…." He stood up, bent to finish re-adjusting his spine, and walked over to Reese and Ric were lying.

Ric slowly stood up, twisted his back, and said, "Oh man… that was some scary stuff… where's Rose?"

Reese squealed a little, and then curled into a ball. Small tears began to well up in her eyes.

"Rose was… well… _squeezed_… as Pandi was... that's what I believe happened. It sure did sound like it…" Noah muttered to Ric.

"Oh… damn shame… she would have been a good fighter."

"Don't… just… just stop talking about it, alright? I… I don't want to deal with this… not now…" Reese snapped with her voice faltering as larger tears appeared. "She was the only family I had left… and now… she was used in an _incarnation _ritual to bring…to bring…" She stopped there, and then burst into a crying fit.

After around five minutes, she settled down enough to roll over and withhold her tears. Noah knelt down next to her and rubbed her shoulder gently. "Reese… I don't really know what to say… I never really knew my family… They left me when I was just a little kid… I've never felt the loss of losing a family… but there is nothing we can really do about it now…"

She turned and looked into his eyes, then to his hand, and back at him. Her expression became angry, "Well if you don't have anything to say to help, then why don't you just shut up and leave me alone! Let me deal with my own problems, alright!" Her eyes glowed with a mixture of anger and sadness.

Noah stood up, and looked down so his expression was hidden. He muttered, "Alright then. Ric, let's go. Let's leave this _big strong lady_ to herself so she can try to fix her problems without the support of her new friends. Is that what you want, Reese? Huh?" His voice grew to a shout near the end.

Reese was silent.

"Noah, I think you should settle down…" Ric said sincerely. He glanced down and saw Reese shivering. Noah took note of this, sighed, and took off his cloak. He draped Reese in it.

While he was knelt down, he slowly shifted his lips towards hers as if to kiss her, but then detoured to her ear and muttered softly, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound so rude… meet us at the front gate in about half-an-hour, so we can set out." He stood up, brushed himself clean, and nodded towards the door to signal Ric. Ric walked at a normal pace out entrance, leaving Noah behind. Noah took one last glance at Reese and began to mutter, "I… I lo- really like you Reese… I hope you're alright…" Then he strode out of the temple himself, leaving Reese to contemplate what had happened.

**Noah's View**

I sighed and turned to Ric. We stopped at the local inn to get some medical attention and a few supplies for our trip, but it turns out that we need to go searching around the town. All this shabby place has is a doctor… It's disgusting here… The tables are splintered, the wallpaper is... well, you can hardly tell there ever _was_ wallpaper… and the smog of tobacco smoke permeated the air… it was sickening… It was so tiny too…

This little "slice of heaven" was located near the center of the town, right next to a bowling alley. It was one normal sized room, fitted with a few tables and a bar. Everything was made out of wood, besides the cups for the drink. There was a few men sitting at the bar smoking pipes and laughing. They had particularly long ears… everyone has long ears… how odd…

There wasn't much else, besides a small room near the bar, and the upstairs rooms. There must have only been two rooms, seeing as the whole building is so damn _small. _The small room by the bar was the inn's/town's doctor. I can't believe how healthy most of the people here are… the only doctor is shoved in a small room at the bar with so little supplies; he can't help a few travelers with some minor cuts and scrapes…

"Hey Noah, are you alright?" Ric said, shaking my arm. I must have spaced out again… I shook my head and looked back at him.

"Sorry about that, I was just observing this… hell-hole. Hey, did you talk to the doctor?"

"Yea, he said that he can't do anything besides give us some bandages and herbs. Our wounds aren't too serious. We need to look around the square for anything else. We get going soon too, we need to meet Reese in a little while." He stood up and gathered the few supplies he had. Suddenly, he paused and turned to me, "Hey, do you want a drink really fast? You must be a little tired after everything that's happened…"

"Nah," I said, "I don't drink alcohol. I don't know what other people think about it, but I've only seen it do bad things. It ruins your senses. I need to be on high alert at all times…"

"Alright, I understand. Sorry for asking…" He continued to pack his things.

I stood up now, and picked up my broadsword. "So, how are we going to do this… like, gather all the supplies?"

"Hmm… you're right, we need a plan… I could just get everything, and you could wait for Reese." Ric said with a small smile.

"Why should I make you do everything?" I questioned. I don't like not being able to do anything.

"Well, I thought you might want to be the first one to see her. I can tell you have a thing for her…" Ric smiled even bigger

I blushed, and then said quickly, "How did you know!" A small smile drew my lips apart when I began to think about Reese… I noticed the smile quickly, so I stopped.

"The way you act around her, buddy, just shouts that you like her. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone, unless you want me too."

"No no, don't tell anyone yet… hey, do you think she likes me too?"

"I don't know. We did just meet up thought. Give it some time; I'm sure we'll be able to tell pretty soon."

"Alright… thanks Ric. Hey, about our plan for gathering supplies… how about you grab the food, and I'll get the miscellaneous stuff."

"Sure, no problem. I'll see you at the main gate." He scrawled a few things on a little note and handed it to me. "This is what we need," He said. He tossed me a small pouch of coins, and I thanked him. We nodded to each other before heading out to the market.

**Reese's View**

_I… I can't believe… he just… Gannondorf that bastard… he took Rose from me… but if feels like he took more than that… like he took my soul too… I'm so cold… so alone… so…_

"Reese… Reese, listen to me…" Rose's voice faintly resounded in my head.

_Is that really you, Rose? I thought you were… you were… _I sniffled, both in my head and in reality.

"Reese… it is true, I… I'm gone… but I'm here now, in spirit, to help you through this. The loss of someone who you love, family wise, is terrible. Even though… I was the last family you had… you do need to hold off your grieving for another time. Noah and Ric both need your help to repel the evil that has been released into the world by… my blood…. They can help you recover; you just need to accept that you actually need support."

_But… but…_

"But nothing. You need them, and you need to realize that." Her voice was stronger now, like she was shouting at me. She continued, "Now are you ready to recollect yourself and get back out there?"

_I think so… Yes… but will I ever see you again?_

"I doubt it… unless you really need me again… So I guess this is goodbye, my friend… and Reese… Noah… might be… more important… to you… then you might… think…" He voice faded, and the world started to reappear around me. I must have dozed off… but now I knew what I had to do.

I hoisted myself up off the cold floor, making carful movements to keep Noah's cloak on my shoulders. _He said something about the front gate in a half-hour, right? I should hurry…_ The air was surprisingly cold for spring, even in, now, the afternoon. I hugged the cloak around my body to keep warm. It was surprisingly soft for how it looks… it was comforting, and part of me imagined it was Noah warming up now, not just the cloak… I smiled to myself, then turned to the door and strutted, confidently, out to the world.

**Ric's View**

"… and a few apples too!" I yelled over the crowd to the vendor. Damn crowds… so many people around make me cautious. I always manage to make a fool of myself somehow, and I constantly need to ask myself _did I order the "socially correct" products _or _was the person next to me supposed to go first?_ I don't know why I think like that…. I think it started once my dad left me a few years ago…

"Hey! Your shit's here! That'll be 10 gold!" The vender yelled. The lady next to me shook my shoulder and pointed to the satchel of supplies.

"Oh, sorry…" I muttered.

I grabbed the bag, rubbing my head. It almost hurt to think about what happened… I nodded to the man and the woman, and handed the vendor his money. I hurriedly ran away from the crowd, and towards the main gate.

Good old castle town… always bustling with activity. Always the same people each and every day, doing nearly the same things. I'm glad I went to see Noah. I like to help people, like doing things for them. Not just sitting by myself, hunted every so often. Maybe now I can do something… redeem myself. Maybe even have some fun for once…

It doesn't matter. Noah seems to have a plan, and it's my duty to help. I noticed him talking to some vender about torches. We don't need torches…. But if he really wants one, I guess that's alright…

I shook my head slightly, lifted my supplies, and hurriedly walked to the drawbridge.

**Third Person**

Ric walked quickly, clutching his satchel to his chest. He paused a step before the wooden drawbridge and peered out into the open world. The small rolling hills were gently dotted with light and heavy grasses, and the occasional tree. Lon Lon Ranch could be seen farther off into the distance, distinguished by the tall wooden fence that surrounded it. The sun, just beginning to fall, kissed the hills and shrubs in a way that made them slightly glimmer. Below him, the Hyrule Moat could be heard softly trickling. This moat helped protect the town against idiotic night creatures. Off to the left of him, part of the moat could be seen merging with the Zora River. The river was an important resource, being the nearest source of water to both Castle Town and Kakariko village. It also sent the scent of clean water and marine plants into the nearby air.

As if appearing from thin air, Noah tapped on Ric's shoulder. He said, "Hey, you got everything?"

Ric jumped onto the drawbridge, screaming. He demanded angrily, "What the hell man? Where did you come from!"

Noah nodded his head backwards, gesturing that that was his point of entrance, keeping his expression a straight face.

Ric sighed, calming himself. "Yea, I got everything. How 'bought you?"

"Yep, everything on the list is right here in this bag. Empty water skins… tents… pillows… rope… bucket… some of this stuff seems pretty useless… hey, I even snatched up a few torches. Torches are always useful." He helps up a torch to demonstrate.

"Good. Did you see Reese by any chance? She should be here soon…"

Right on cue, Reese could be seen emerging from the crowd and striding towards the gate. Her long black hair shimmered in the gentile sun, and the ponytail created by long chopsticks and a leather strip tied in her hair, rocked gently due to her footsteps. She was easily noticed, even in the crowd, for her black body suit that gently hugged her body was very distinct. In addition to that, she wore dark red-violet tube socks and hand-wraps, and the same color shoulder wraps. Noah's cloak was wrapped around her shoulders, and this made Noah smile.

"Hey guys!" She shouted in her grown woman voice. Noah stared longingly at her.

"Hey Reese, feeling better?" Ric questioned.

"A little bit… just drop the subject though; I really don't want to talk about it…"

"Alright. Everyone ready to head out then?" Ric announced. Noah and Reese nodded simultaneously. Ric turned out towards the world and started walking.

"Finally, we can leave this dirty, crime-filled, unguarded hell-hole…" Noah muttered. Ric caught wind of that comment, spun around, and his tone became angry.

"What do you mean _dirty, crime-filled, unguarded hell-hole_?"

"Honestly, Ric, I would rather be out _there_," he pointed outwards to Hyrule Field, panoramically moving his arm for emphasis, "then stay in _here_ and attempt to feel safe."

Ric tsked him, and retorted with, "How in the lands could you feel unsafe here! We have the best guards in all of Hyrule! Even the Gerudo warriors are jealous of our guards!"

Noah bowed his head and laughed a little. After his small fit of laughter, he managed to leak out, "Hey Ric… I don't think it helps your argument that… that the gate guard over there is _fast asleep!"_

Ric, once again, spun around, but this time peered at the guard who was, in fact, fast asleep. He sighed in defeat and turned back to the open plains.

Suddenly, a mysterious figure appeared behind the Reese. The person must have overheard Noah, because it said in a deeper, but still feminine voice, "Unguarded you say? I say nay to that! Nothing gets in, or out, of the city without _me_ noticing!"

Everyone quickly turned, and Reese additionally jumped back. There stood a rather unexpected figure. "Who are you to talk about Castle Town's defense?" Ric demanded, pointing at the woman angrily.

"Why, I'm the head guard here! Can't you tell by my impressive weapon here?" She said, gripping the scimitar scabbard strapped on her lower back, just like Noah's broadsword.

"Really? I couldn't tell… your outfit doesn't fit your position…" Ric said, his tone now more solemn then angry.

The woman looked at herself, and then said, "Yea… I guess it is a little _different_… but I would rather be different then wear that clunky outfit the rest of the guard has to wear…"She wore a black suit made of silk, which seemed confortable but not protective.

Noah assessed the woman, feature wise and appearance wise. _Medium build… five foot seven or so height… her hair is a little long though, I think after hip-length, it's just too much. I think she can make it work though… I wonder if she is bugging us just because she wants to adventure with us… _He thought.

"By the way, my name is Roxy!" she said, walked to Reese, and shook her hand.

Reese smiled and responded with, "Glad to meet you!"

Ric smiled and nodded, "I'm Ric, and this is quite the pleasant encounter."

Noah was silent for a minute, and then realized it was his turn to greet. He muttered quickly, "Hey, I'm Noah. Glad to meet ya. Just a quick question here… What do you really want here?"

Roxy raised her hands in defeat, turned her head, and said figuratively, "Alright… alright… you caught me. Nobody really listens to the head guard. Nobody has attacked us in seven years! I signed up for this job for the _action_, and all I got were orders to sign and ruts to walk in!" She walked over to Noah, fell to her knees and begged, "Please sir! Let me go with you!"

**Noah's View**

_Well that was unexpected!_ I thought to myself looking down at Roxy, who was at my feet. _I need to take in to consideration though… if there hasn't been any action, has she had any battle experience?_

Roxy looked at my face and whimpered. She was pouting, trying to make me feel guilty. It was almost working.

I sighed, and then began to grasp my sword. "Alright Roxy, I've thought about it, and figured that there is only one way to test your skills." I stated powerfully. She stood up, wiped her face, and also drew her weapon. I heard a small, ominous growl from the back of the group, but ignored it.

"Ah, I see you understand what I mean," I began, and then looked at Ric and Reese. Ric returned with a nod, understanding the situation at hand. Reese, on the other hand, made a face of disgust and turned her nose up into the air. I was confused by this gesture, so I shrugged it off.

"Let's head into the field… there's a bit more space to have this skirmish." Roxy mentioned, turning outwards. She marched off the drawbridge, and continued about fifty paces in the grass before halting and inspecting her weapon.

Reese looked confused, "Wait, skirmish? What do they mean by…?" She trailed off into silence, seeing as nobody was really paying attention to her at the moment.

I followed Roxy out, just as a cool gentle wind brushed the meadow and whooshed through the gates. I copied her fifty spaces outward, and then took an extra ten spaces across from her. With my sword in my left hand, I felt ready. I shouted over to Roxy, "Are you prepared now?"

She retorted with, "More then I'll ever be!"

Roxy sprinted at me with amazing speed, but I was ready. She swung her scimitar upwards as she grew close, only to have me block it with the broad side of my sword. She swung horizontally to the right, only to again have my sword halt the path of hers. I snickered and brought my sword up as if to swing, but instead pushed the broad side forward with both my hands and caused Roxy to falter.

I brought up my blade and swung powerfully at her, purposely hitting her scimitar. This knocked it to the side long enough for me to preform my attack.

I didn't plan on hurting her too bad, and I knew that's what this sword would do. Even with my increased strength, I knew this sword was heavy. Heavy means it has power with it, and that power can really hurt Roxy. So I made a split second decision and turned the sword so only the broad side of it hit her. Though not a slicing pain, the pain it did seem to cause was still great. I knocked her off her feet, resounding in a large _smack_ as I hit her side. Roxy clambered to the ground, but began to stand in only a few seconds. She looked weak, but still up for the fight.

"Using the broad side I see… are you going easy on me?" She spat with a sneer.

"I just don't plan on killing you… yet." I retorted.

"Fine, have it your way. I'm not going to go so easy though."

"I know." I said solemnly.

With this Roxy spun and, with one fluid movement, scooped up her scimitar and slashed at my legs. This time, my sword wasn't fast enough and she hit me. However, I was wearing plated boots and shin guards, and this protected me.

Nevertheless, this still didn't stop her fluid movement. The sword slid off my shin, and Roxy jumped back up. She raised her sword up to vertically slice me, but I knew better and deflected this blow. I pushed her sword away, and thought of an attack to end this fight.

She cocked her sword back, preparing for a horizontal swing, and I left myself open. She seemed to snicker, and swung her sword with what seemed like all her might. "_Silly girl,"_ I thought to myself, "_she fell right for my trap."_

Before her blade could strike me, I swung my sword with enough force to cause her throw her arm back to a cocked position. It left her head right open. In a split second, I grabbed the pommel of blade and brought my hand down on Roxy's head, letting the weight of the sword carry my hand down. It was enough force to cause her to spit blood and crumple to the ground once more. This time, she actually seemed hurt.

"Hey Roxy, are you alright? That seemed to really hurt… and you spit up a little blood on me." I said worriedly. I didn't want to actually hurt her.

She muttered something incomprehensive, and squirmed slightly. I put the tip of my sword in the dirt and rested on the pommel. She squirmed a bit more, and I sighed.

"Well that was a good fight, I have to say. Too bad it ended so… one-sided," I said trying to make her feel better and be humorous at the same time.

Then, so many events unfolded in a split second. Roxy, beyond my knowledge was still gripping her sword, jumped up and surprised me. I was so shocked; I didn't even reach for my blade.

She grinned at me, and then yelled mockingly, "Never leave your enemy unfinished, no matter what the situation!" She cocked back her sword like before, and swung one final time, this time deeply cutting into my left shoulder. I yelled, and my brain exploded with activity as blood splattered through the air.

Something was happening in my mind, but I couldn't tell what. It seemed like chains of energy were erupting in my brain, and the last thing I remembered was the sage, telling me that I had incredible power locked away in my mind. Suddenly, a massive force pushed me back, and I remember seeing Roxy fly back as. Well. It seemed like the energy from my mind… it came out and pushed everything in front of me away, like an extremely powerful gust of wind…

Then, I hit the ground. Everything went back. The last thing I heard was Reese yelling my name.

**Roxy's View**

I was flung back by some unnatural force, just as I thought I had won. I screamed out of instinct until I lost my breath as I hit the dirt some ten paces away. My scimitar, which had been tossed from my hands, clamored also to the ground next to my head. I gasped for air, only to have my lungs filled with dust and dirt. That forced me to cough, and to my surprise, small droplets of blood seemed to fly from my mouth as well. I sat up and rubbed my head until I felt where Noah had bashed my skull. I wrenched my hand back, and then stood up.

The grass where we had battled was now torn up and tossed about due to the blast. I noticed Reese bolting to Noah, and Ric patiently walking to me. When he was but a few feet away, he said, "Hey? You alright?"

"Yea, I'm ok…" I said back.

"You sure? That was a pretty nasty blow to your head there. Maybe you should go get checked out…"

"No, I'm going to be fine," I sat up, brushing the dust off my shirt, "just one question though… do you have any idea what happened?"

"No, not the slightest… all I saw was Noah yell, and then some wave of energy blast out from his forehead… it knocked you both back. Some fight, huh?"

"Yes indeed… maybe we should go join everyone."

"Sure thing. Let me help you up…" Ric extended his arm to me, with a small smile parting on his lips. I smiled as well, and grabbed his hand.

I slowly rose up, and saw the full magnitude of the situation. All the grass at least fifteen paces wide and ten paces long was pushed towards my direction, like a mighty wind struck this area alone. Something really strange is going on. Ric nodded his head towards Reese and Noah, who were hugging in a patch of dirt about twenty paces to our right.

"Hey, you can let go of my hand now, if you want." Ric mentioned, and I noticed my fingers had interlocked with his. I released my hand quickly and blushed.

"Sorry Ric, let's head over now."

"Sure thing, Roxy."

**Reese's View**

As soon as I saw both Roxy and Noah fly back, I darted forward, persistent to not loose yet another one of my friends. I yelled out "Noah!" as I saw him hit the dirt. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Ric heading towards Roxy, so I let him deal with her. When I was next to Noah, I fell to my knees and said, "Noah, are you alright?"

He was silent besides his faint breaths.

"Noah, get up now… it's now funny anymore…" I muttered, and he continued his silence. I grew worried. "Noah please, don't scare everyone like this."

"Urg…" he muttered, but did not move.

I leaned my mouth close to his head this time and muttered considerately, "Noah, no more games. That was a pretty crazy fight, but you _need _the wake up now."

I still got no response.

I grew frustrated with this, so I fell back on my legs, crossed my arms, and pouted. I let out a small, "rawr," and then pondered for a moment. Almost instantaneously, I had a small epiphany. I swiftly shot out my finger, dug into Noah's side, said, "Moop!", and then wrenched it back.

This time, Noah quickly cringed and grabbed his sides. His head, however, seemed heavy to him and didn't stop when his body was folded completely. Instead, his head shot forward and launched into the dirt in front of him, making a loud thud. He moved his hands from his sides to his head and yelled, "Damnit!"

I was shocked for a moment at his outburst, until I noticed what had happened to him. My expression grew grim, and I slowly reached out my arms to give him a hug. It took him a few moments to perceive my arms, but at last he slowly relaxed into my arms, and I hugged him, whispering, "Sorry Noah…" into his ear. I was careful of his torn shoulder. Suddenly, everything began to fade, and I got lost in the smell of his white hair…

"Hey Reese… this is nice and all, but could you help me wrap up my shoulder? It's been like, ten minutes and I think I may be bleeding out…" Noah muttered, and I shook awake. I must have fallen asleep while comforting him.

"Yea, sorry. You just sm-… nothing, never mind. I'll grab the bandages…" I said quickly, trying not to seem weird.

"I what?" Noah said with a sneer.

"Nothing, really. Just hold still please…" And I began to wrap his shoulder. It was a simple job, and afterwards I noticed Ric and Roxy standing on either side of me. "Hey guys, I think it's time to head out."

Noah jumped up, rolled his freshly bandaged shoulder, and announced, "Yes, I agree. Where should we head to first everyone?"

The group murmured to each other, until I spoke up, "How about Kokiri Forest?"

Everyone went silent and turned towards me. My face became hot, and felt the urge to just turn and hide. However, Noah spoke up on my behalf, "Yes that sounds like a great idea. Forests are usually pretty safe."

Everyone again muttered for a moment, and then Noah helped me up. I silently thanked him, and began to gather my bearings. Roxy, Ric, and Noah did the same, along with gathering the supplies left near the drawbridge. It only took a few minutes for everyone to be prepared and just as the sun passed from the highest point in the sky, Ric and Roxy scouted out ahead. I stayed back with Noah, who was relaxing for a moment more to let his wound heal.

"Hey Reese, why don't you go on ahead? I'll only be a minute." Noah said to me kindly. He seemed to be hinting something but I can't pinpoint what. I can see it in his eyes.

"Well, I just thought you would want me here to keep company. You might get lonely in the back of the group here…" I stated, slightly playfully. That thing I could see in his eyes faded away, but was replaced with pure kindness.

"Alright then, whatever you want. Mind checking on my cut there? It seems… different from before… I don't know why though…" He trailed off, and began to roll his shoulder just bit. I slowly walked up to his back, and began to remove the bandages.

His wound was completely healed, and with no rough skin covering it. All that is left to recognize a previous injury was the streams of dried blood coming from the healed spot.

"How bad is it? Nasty? Rotten? Scarred?" Noah said, and I picked up no hint of fear in his tone.

"It's fine Noah. Like completely fine, as if there was never a wound there… I'll take of the bandages." I unraveled the roll of bandage on his shoulder, and put it away on my belt for it could be used again.

"How could that be… the sages must have strengthened me more than I thought," He muttered, then sighed. He rolled his shoulder once more and turned to me before continuing, "Let's move out then. We need to catch up."

I moved in stealthily for a quick hug, which he seemed to happily give me, but it was only with one arm. I pouted a little into his chest before disengaging the hug. I nodded my head, and we began a quick-paced walk towards Kokiri forest. As we walked, another gust of wind blew, and his hair was rustled in a way that caused me to sigh happily. He must have heard me, because he turned his head towards me and said, "Everything alright?"

"Yes Noah, everything is fine" I told him, and smiled to myself as I walked behind him.

_Word from the Author- Sorry for the long wait everyone, i've had a lot going on in my life, and I had some major writiers block. I hope you enjoyed this installment, and feel free to send me tips on grammar, general writing ideas, and future story plans. Those are always helpful. Well, i'll get started on the next chaper. Prepare for Kokiri Forest! Bye!_


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven: To the Forest Temple**

**Noah's View**

It took Reese and I but only a moment to catch up with Roxy and Ric, and when we did we quickened our pace towards the forest. We were following a dirt path, which seemed created by the traffic this area used to get. The land itself was peaceful at first glance as the trees gently swayed to the soft breeze, and the grass released its scent. I turned to Reese, who was to my left, and she smiled back at me. I couldn't tell if she was enjoying the nature as much as I did.

I looked back out to take in the surrounding one more time. We reached the middle of a small dirt road and I noticed the tops of a small patch of trees, which stood out against the rest of the field that was mostly just short grasses. To my left, I noticed a staircase and the small trickle of a stream underneath a bridge. Reese nudged me and said, "That's Kakariko village, the only other town of Hylans. Also, it's rumored that one of the temples is there."

"We'll have to keep that in mind then… if I may ask, what's with the temples? I know we were at the Temple of Time, but why are there others? Is Hyrule made up of many religions or something?" I asked, confused by the whole Temple subject.

"Well, there is really only the one idea of how Hyrule was created, and we discussed that. The other temples are areas where the sages, those who guard the sacred realm and the Triforce, have their power contained at their strongest. Each sage has their own temple, and that makes six of them. They are located in Kokiri Forest, Death Mountain, Lake Hylia, Greudo Valley, and it's fabled that the final one was located in Kakariko village. A while back, Gannondorf sealed all of the sage's power in their respective temple and took over the lands," Reese informed me. This was quite a bit to take in, but after a moment to think about it, I added two and two.

"So now he must be re-using the temples to contain the sage's power again. We should make it our goal to search all the temples and weasel out any evil forces there…"

Reese nodded, and we had our plan set. Ric and Roxy were well over the top of the hill, and I took another glance out. Now as we approached the height of the mound, I could see the number of trees in the field and a small opening in the landscape, which was in the shape of a giant hollow log. It cast a great shadow inside, and I could not see into it. To my left now was split in the river, where it emptied out on one side and passed behind the landscape on the other. To my right was a small wall, which seemed to be there for no apparent reason. Farther out was a circular wall with a tower and a few buildings peeking out from behind it.

With Reese at my side, we continued our pace and met Ric and Roxy at the mysterious entrance of the forest. The smell of various pollens rushed through the entrance as a light wind began to form. However, there were a few other odd scents, and I along with the others could pick them up. There were two that we recognized, and Ric was the first to speak up.

"That's… blood... the blood of the young Kokiri … I can smell it… It's unmistakable… but it's not too strong though…" He said solemnly with a slight frown. I could see Roxy getting worried as well. Reese was unmoved; she continued to hold a straight face.

In a split second, the wind picked up again but only came from the entrance. It was a hot and dry wind, unnatural to the past breezes. The air stung my eyes, and I was forced to turn my head and rub them. Roxy and Reese began to run through, and before I could muster the strength to say something, Ric also took off. Once I could see and the wind had stopped, I began to run as well.

It took but a moment to break through the thick shadows of the tree, and I could see the forest had begun. The trees overhead were thick, and only a few shafts of light managed to draft through. I only had time to quickly glance at this, it seemed, buffer zone between the forest and field before I was already through another hollow log. This one was a tad longer, but again the darkness passed quickly. I ran out the other end to meet up with my group and witness a horrible scene.

Kokiri forest was a small town inside the dense forest. There were large trees which appeared to serve as the homes for the residents. Down the middle of the village there was a small winding dirt path, not unlike the dirt paths in the field. To the left of the entrance, there was the largest tree home, presumably belonging to the head of the town. There was a small upward path behind this home leading to another dark trunk, which must have led to other parts of the forest. Down past the home there was a tiny pond, fit with a tiny waterfall and some large stepping stones. The pond emptied out into the lower-middle part of the village where a few grassy spots stuck out. Past that was the second house on that side, and the only house to have a cloth-like roof over the entrance.

On the immediate right side of the village was a slightly steep hill, leading up to a flat platform of land. There was a maze of short fence leading up to a wall where a slight rumbling could be heard. There appeared to be a large pile of ashes next to this fence, where a house seemed to have once stood. Father down, the hill came to an abrupt end and became a small valley where yet another home lied. This home, unlike the rest, was more of a full house built on top of a flattened tree. It was much wider than any other tree, and it was also the lowest altitude (seeing as it was at the bottom of a tiny valley). A bit further down was a round tree, with a curved path leading up to the top of it, and was then connected to a rope bridge that connected two seemingly random pillars. At the top of the final pillar, closed to the entrance, and a small girl quivering.

Past the round house was a second tall tree-home, and the only one with branches and leaves. This led to the back wall of the village where, lined up to the entrance of the village, a small path began and wound to the left and out of sight.

Despite the quaint and small look of the village, there were men in armor storming through and attacking whoever they saw. The group was near the waterfall when they turned around and look at us. There was about five or six men, each with their faces covered by a helmet, and they began to advance towards us. The farthest back in the group tossed off the corpse of a small child from the top of his spear.

"This doesn't look good guys…" Roxy muttered, and began to pull out her scimitar. Ric followed suit and cocked an arrow in his bow. Reese made a whimpering noise, showing her fear over the situation. I stepped in front of her as if to protect her, but she simply pushed me back to my original position. When the men reached about a pace away, I stepped to the front of the group to confront them.

"What do you want, pillaging this small village? Let there be peace, solders," I attempted at diplomacy, but the men didn't respond. I thought I heard a small humming noise, but it didn't seem relevant. "Please, there is no reason to be troubling these children. If you would direct me to your commander…" I attempted to continue, but then I was cut off. There was an incoherent shout in front of me, coming from the tree house. The men turned towards it for a moment, than directed their attention back to us. They began to advance towards us, each pointing themselves at a member of the group. One faced Roxy and jabbed his small sword in her direction. Another was aimed at Ric, and he more-so pointed at his large dagger. The third, who appeared to be the smallest of the bunch, eyed up Reese with both his eyes and his spear. Reese in turn pulled out her knives and readied them. The final three gathered around me, two of which had spears and the third, unlike all the rest, had a rapier.

"Please, we're trying to be civil…"I tried to say, but just then a man in an odd green tunic came out of the large tree house waving an iron broadsword in the air. He let out an angry cry and jumped from his perch, immediately sprinting towards us. One of the men surrounding me turned towards the sprinting man and tossed his spear at him. Just as the man reached the second pillar, the spear stabbed through his boot and caused him to fall face-first into the dirt. The armored men turned their attention back at us.

The man with the rapier quickly drew his blade and swung horizontally at me, but I managed duck just in time. I tackled him, and noticed out of the corner of my eye that the other men began attacking the rest of the group as well. Once the sword-man and I hit the ground, I rolled off and quickly took a fighting stance, drawing my sword at the same time. By then the man had also recovered, but allowed the two spear men (one still disarmed) to advance towards me. The disarmed man swung at me, and I dodged seeing as I didn't want to take the blood of another man if I didn't have to. He swung again, this time with enough force to make him trip and stutter forward, for I had moved to the side. With the pommel of my sword I hit him square in the back, causing him to fall in the dirt next to the green tunic man.

The second spear man jabbed at me, but I simply pushed the tip of the spear out of harm's way with my blade. I thought to myself _He must be getting frustrated…_ I jumped out of the way so my back faced the hill, giving me more room to retreat. The man jabbed and swung constantly showing no signs of tiring, which surprised me as I continued to slowly walk backwards up the hill. The odd humming noise I heard from before was steadily growing, and did more-so the closer the man was to me. It was suspicious…

It wasn't until I heard a horrible screeching coming from the group were my suspicions confirmed. The wail lasted all but five seconds, and in those five seconds I learned the true nature of these… things.

** Reese's View**

The odd green tunic man caught me by surprise so much, my knives fumbled in my hand. Luckily the armored… freak in front of me didn't notice. I thought for a moment that I should attack and take the element of surprise, but disregarded it seeming as Noah sounded like he was trying to convince these guys otherwise. It wasn't until the tunic man charged at us did I know things were going to get serious. I saw a spear fly through the air towards the man, and then Noah ducked out of the way of a sword.

Acting, not thinking, I jabbed forward at the guy in front of me. My knife made a small puncture in his steel armor, but only that. He brushed it off and jabbed his spear forward nearly cutting my shirt, but I ducked just in time. "Hey, watch it freak!" I yelled, attempting to intimidate him. It didn't work. There was a strange humming in response but I ignored it, thinking it only a ringing in my ear. I jumped up to avoid another spear jab, once again just in time.

They fought like zombies. No skill, just jabbing and jabbing and jabbing and attempting to cause some sort of physical pain. It was no trouble at all to dodge each and every attack. I was only struck once, when I timed a jump wrong and I got my left flank slightly cut. Through my constant routine of jumping and ducking, I noticed Ric fending off his enemy. He also seemed to have some sort of rhythm going, bobbing and weaving out of the radius of his attacker's dagger. He must have noticed me staring, for he gave me a small smile showing that he was fine. It didn't, however, cover up the good-sized cut he had in his cheek. It must have been from a failed duck. I trusted his silent judgment and focused on the creep attacking me.

_No actual person would fight like this. It's getting nowhere… _I thought to myself, and decided to take the offensive. Seeing as I was just about at the back wall of the village (near the entrance), I was going to use that to my advantage. After the din-knows-what number of ducks, I felt my back rest on the cool stone of the wall. The humming settled just a tab bit, and Mr. Freaky brought his arm back for a powerful stab. Just as he began to thrust the spear forward, I launched myself off the wall with my feet. Using my slim build, I ducked between the man's legs and got to his back. I quickly jumped up and readied my knife for a back-stab.

I had all the time in the world, for the attacker had caught his spear in the stone wall. He was stuck, and was wholly focused on getting his silly weapon out. I took this golden time to plot the exact point on his back I was going to plunge my knife. I settled on the square of his back. Just as I was about to execute the kill, I heard a wretched shriek from behind me, coming from Roxy's position. I assumed the worst until I turned around.

**Roxy's View**

I was so focused on the freak in front of me that when I heard the incoherent yelling of a man in the distance, I jumped out of my skin. I however did not fumble my weapon like I noticed Reese did. And to think I thought her the powerful type, not scared of anything. No matter, I guess I shouldn't talk seeing as I jumped myself.

It was when I saw Noah duck out of the way of a sword that my fight-or-flight sense kicked in. I backed up just a few paces to give me room for fighting and running. The solider that confronted be charged at me with his sword, making horribly planned strikes at me. I was easily able to deflect these blows with my swift scimitar. I made a few attempts to strike myself, but one thing these jerks do have is some damn good armor. I had to keep retreating to keep the necessary distance I required to strike.

I took a quick sidestep to dodge a vertical slice, and I noticed Ric attempting a duck. His cheek was pretty well opened up from that failure. He underestimated the size of his opponent's weapon, and the skill of the wielder. Two deadly mistakes.

Another step back, another deflected horizontal strike. It was our first fight with bad guys and I'm getting bored. I let Dr. Jabby here thrust a little too hard and fall on his face. I giggled, and then took the moment to glance at everyone else. Reese was just about at the wall, and Noah just jumped and turned his back to the hill. Ric was in a steady rhythm of sidestepping and jumping.

And then it hit me, like an arrow one could say. Nobody on my team was on the offensive! _Now's my time to shine _I thought to myself. I let the man get himself up before readying my weapon again. He slowly turned, and I heard a dreadful humming. The same humming I swear I heard before, when these freaks first stood in front of us. It was odd, but I didn't care. I was ready for a kill.

The solider took another swing at me, and I let him miss once more as I spun out of the way. I got to his back, and he slowly straightened himself. I cocked my sword, and swung horizontally at the man's neck. My steel sword clanged against the metal helmet, and I saw it fling off. There was a blood-curdling shriek, and what my eyes saw next will be the most terrifying, yet interesting, sight so far.

**Noah's View**

The shriek made my assailants pause for a minute and turn towards the source of the noise. I looked over at Roxy and gasped. She had struck at the man, slicing his neck with her deadly blade. That man though… was no actual man.

The suit of armor clamored to the ground in a shiny heap, and what was left was shocking. It was a humanoid form, only dark purple/black and its body seemed to wave like the lake. Its outline was jagged, and it lacked any genitalia (its shape was like one who was wearing pants and a shirt). The face was flat, save for the small jagged bump for a nose and the indents for bright red eyes. And the hands, instead of fingers, were claws that were as jagged as the rest of its shape.

"These suits of armor hold not men, but shadows! I suspect minions of that evil Gannondorf, for there is some resemblance to the form we saw. Don't worry about spilling the blood of a fellow human my friends! No mercy!" I shouted, hoping to encourage my allies. It worked, but also drew the attention of the attackers.

The humming, which I now suspect as their form of speech, grew almost painfully loud from the shadow in front of me. From it, you could almost hear whispers of something to faint for a man or woman's ear. I readied my sword once more, now prepared for the kill.

The shadow lunged failingly, for all I needed to do was sidestep and he tripped on his own mistake. I took no extra time to drive my sword into the square of his back like I would drive a sword into a pedestal. There was a slightly quieter shriek, and the armor of the attacker fell apart and rolled down the hill. There was no sign that anything once took the space of that armor.

It was my mistake to dwell on my victory. It was only a moment later that a leather glove of the other shadow drove into my cheek and forced me to the ground. My vision blurred but recovered quickly enough for my senses to kick in once more. I rolled out of the way of another punch, and I heard the _thump _of the glove hitting the dirt. What the shadows lack in smarts they make up for with force.

**Ric's view**

Finally I could release some of this pent up energy, and after seeing that these creatures aren't people, I can get my revenge for this gash in my cheek. The armored shadow had turned to see the reason for the shriek, and then turned his attention back to me.

He quickly lunged forward, and I ducked. I am a horrible ducker, because once again I was struck. This time, it was just a graze by the last cut. It wasn't enough to cause me to falter, so I just ignored the twang of pain and continued with my plan. I laid flat on my back and kicked up my foot, pushing myself up with my hands for extra power. I hit his arm, causing the shadow to throw his knife into the air and to make him step back in surprise.

The dagger descended handle-down, right into my readied hand. I stuck a pose and glanced over at Reese. She was just about finished up with her attacker, so I threw on a smile. _Heh… she's pretty when she fights…_ I thought for a moment.

I changed my attention back to my assailant. He had recovered, and was advancing to my position. I ducked down and, as he ran towards me, rammed my shoulder into his gut. He folded over and made a coughing-like noise. It was my one chance to make a messy death strike.

Releasing some of my pent up anger and rage, I upper-cut swung the dagger straight into the shadow's visor. It shrieked and fell backwards on its back. There was a gust of dark smoke, and the armor collapsed in on itself. I didn't feel any better. I scoffed and walked over to where Noah was.

**Reese's view**

My chance to strike was gone, but seeing as these things weren't human made me feel so much better. In my few moments of watching Roxy reveal the secret of these things, my attacker got its wits together and turned back at me. He tried to jab at me again, but I knew better then to let him hit me. I caught the spear with a back-hand slap and knocked it from his hand.

I bobbed down and swung up at the shadow's face, only to have my knuckles stopped by the steel armor it was wearing. I did manage to make the helmet unsteady, and when it took another step the helmet toppled off, leaving the shadow open for attack. I took a glance over to Ric, and I caught him smiling at me. _I wonder what he wants from me. He keeps smiling at me like he likes me or something… but that's just not right. _I thought to myself, and then readied my knives once again for the actual kill.

The shadow's back was now pressed up against the wall, and I took my advantage by closing the space between us. I leaned on it… one would say _seductively, _and raised my knives like they were his horns. The humming grew soft and lulling; it must have been happy or something. I smirked and drove my knives into its temples. The same screech I heard before ran out, only quieter. Along with it, the creature dissipated and the armor fell to a slump.

I quickly turned to see how Noah was doing, only to watch a suit of armor lunge itself off a hill and at Noah.

**Noah's View**

The shadow man looked at me with his red eyes and his hum grew rough and loud in my ears. He launched himself at me, but I stood up before he got to me causing him to fall on his back. I grabbed my sword, which had slid down the hill just a bit, and prepared to finish this one off like I did the other. This one was smarter though and rolled himself up the hill before I was ready. Just then, I was struck by an idea. While the shadow gathered his wits, I prepared my sword.

As I had imagined, my assailant jumped at me like he was trying to tackle me. Lucky for me he didn't notice that I had readied my sword just so that he would skewer himself. I smirked just a bit as his torso slid down my blade and the spirit whistled out of him. I flicked the empty armor off of my sword with a swing of my arm and turned to see the rest of the group.

Everything seemed handled. Reese looked as if she sprinted to me, but stopped when she saw I got up. Ric had just finished off his attacker and tossed the dagger it had had into the dirt. Roxy went to check on the carcass of the child we saw. I smiled seeing everyone uninjured, but returned to a neutral expression when I saw blood drip from Ric's cheeks.

I heard someone's pace increase to the right of me, so I turned quickly and noticed the final armored man fleeing. He was sprinting past the pillars until the green tunic man grabbed his leg and caused him to slam into the ground. The green tunic man was still stuck.

I carefully descended the hill (it was a tad steep) and made my way to the fallen solider. I put the point of my sword on his neck, but before I could finish him he… spoke.

"NO! Stop please… don't kill me!" He shouted in a deep rough voice.

"You can speak? I thought you made those… humming noises…" I said confusedly. One would think if these things could talk they would have spoken long before all this.

"I'm not… just get your sword off of me and I'll tell you everything!" He shouted, obviously frightened. I hesitated for just a moment until returning my blade into its sheath. The solider extended his arm, and I grabbed it to help him up. It felt just like a man's arm.

The solider sighed and muttered, "I… am a man, just like you. Not one of these shadow things I've been ordered to command," He then removed his helmet to prove his point. He had short blond hair and dark blue eyes like most Hylans. His features were sharp, and his beard was no more than stubble. He had the tired face of any solider.

"Who ordered you to do this then? You bring monsters here to terrorize… children!" I said loudly. I could feel the presence of Reese and Ric next to me.

"It was Gannondorf. He just appeared in the barracks and took us all prisoner. Forced us to swear allegiance to him. There weren't enough of us for an army, so he enchanted suits of armor he made us make. Filled them with shadows of men, but they looked more like monsters. We would only catch glimpses of them as they filled the armor. It was horrible, and they are the worst fighters I've ever seen. All they know is to press on and attack, no strategies whatsoever. That's why you killed them so easily."

"Well I got that part. They are just… darkness. Pure darkness filling the suits sent to kill… but that doesn't answer my question on why you're here and why you're leading them," I was trying to get as much information from him as possible. Maybe he could even help us. He looked really worn out though… and very tense. Like he's almost planning something…

"The new troops were so stupid, Gannondorf forced most of us to don armor of our own and lead them to where they need to be. He specifically made us make our armor lighter so he could tell us apart, but made us wear the same helmets so we would blend. I was ordered to take this group into Kokiri Forest and terrorize the locals. They were against Gannondorf, and he didn't like that. We were told to get them on his side or to kill them… they were not very cooperative," I could see his arm tense up. The atmosphere itself became tense. I could see the green tunic man shuffle out of the corner of my eye. Seemed he got himself free and was reaching for something…

"He also told us to be on the lookout for a group of adventurers… ones that helped bring him back. Two men and a woman… seems like you got a friend too. Oh well, orders are or-" he began to say until his arm, grasping a short sword, yanked up but was stopped by the green tunic man.

Well… stopped was an understatement. I backed up, pushing Ric and Reese with me, to avoid the spray of blood that came from the man's shoulder which was now a squirting stump. The green tunic man shouted something in another language and lifted his sword as to slice the soldier's head.

"NO! STOP! ARG! AR-"the solider shouted, but his cries were in vain. The green tunic man brutally decapitated him. There was a splatter of blood, and the headless body fell into a pool of it.

The green tunic man took a deep breath, then turned to us and spoke in odd grunts and shouts. I turned my head and gave him a puzzled look, but Ric and Reese seemed to understand. The green tunic man looked at me and then spoke in a way that I could understand. His voice was that of your average middle-aged man.

"I'm sorry; I didn't know you didn't speak Hylan. I'm Link, the hero of time," He said, flashing an obviously fake smile.

"Hey, I'm Noah. I'm a traveling adventurer and I made a stop here in Hyrule. Somehow I got called by the sages who changed me into what I am now. I met Gannondorf who was summoned through the blood of my newly met friends. Now I'm heading to the five temples to defeat him. Nice to meet you, hero of time," I said trying to be a one-upper. Link's expression quickly turned foul.

"Gannondorf again damnit… well, looks like you might need the assistance of an experienced hero. I might not have the Master Sword with me, but I'm still one hundred percent hero!" There was his fake smile again. This guy is… something else.

"Great, help is greatly appreciated Link," I waved my hands to indicate my friends, "This is Ric and Reese, my friends I met in castle town. They've helped me get this far."

Ric nodded, "Hey Link. Good to see you again."

"You know him already?" I asked Ric, turning towards him.

"Yea, as a kid I saw him running through Castle Town. When I saw the Ocarina of Time dangling from his belt, I knew he was some sort of hero," I nodded in approval for his story. I turned to Reese and she jumped, seeming to have dozed off a bit.

"Oh, hi! I'm Reese, and since Gannondorf killed my best friend Rose, I'm set to getting my revenge. After seeing Noah get all buffed up from the sages, he seemed like the best fried to help with this," She gave a small smile and a quick curtsey. She was cute, I have to admit.

I could see Link noticed this too, "Well met Reese, it's my pleasure," He got down on one knee and, taking her hand, kissed the back of it. I had to turn away a little to avoid getting red faced.

Reese wrenched her hand back, obviously displeased. That made me smile, but I felt my gut sink when I saw her blushing a little. _Does she like this guy? This is not good… This is not good at all… _

Roxy joined us just then, and turned towards Link. She extended her hand which was covered in blood. "Hello hello, Mr. Hero of Time! I'm Roxy, the guard captain and new friend of this group," Link hesitantly grasped her hand and shook it.

"Yes, hello… may I ask why your hands are…" He started, but was cut off.

"… Bloody? I was checking to see if that little girl over there was still alive. Dead as a sack of nails though… shame…" Link looked over and scoffed.

"That's just Mindo, don't worry. He's a jerk anyway."

That was mean. This guy is a real piece of work. Didn't seem like a hero to me. He's probably just over-confident after his last adventure. I hope he changes his attitude soon. It's going to be difficult dealing with him otherwise.

I clapped my hands and all heads turned to me. "Well, let's get a move on then. Every second wasted is another second Gannondorf lives. Now Link, where is this Forest Temple I keep hearing about?" I tried to lighten the mood a bit for everyone by sounding enthusiastic. Well, it was mostly to distract myself, but still.

He pointed to the log/area transition on the hill to the left of the entrance, "Right up there everyone. We need to go through the Lost Woods though, so stay close," He slid himself next to Reese and said softly to her, "Especially you."

She giggled, and I, on the inside, exploded. _HE LIKES HER! Din damnit he LIKES HER! ARRG! _I took a few deep breaths, and Roxy noticed my upset expression which subconsciously made its way out to the open. While Reese and Link took their own happy time climbing up the vines to the lost woods, Roxy and Ric approached me.

"Noah, are you alright? It seems like you're not taking this very well…" Roxy tried to sooth me. It didn't work, and I snapped.

"NO! It's not alright! Can't you see he likes her? And she looks… interested!" I said quickly and angrily.

"Hey Noah, calm down. I'm just trying to help here…" Roxy tried again.

"Well it's Not Working! Just go away!" I snapped again, and turned away from her. She nodded and walked to the vines. She waved at Link and Reese who were at the top waiting for us. I hope they aren't looking at me…

Ric put his hand on my shoulder and said in his most supportive tone, "Listen bro, everything is going to be alright, ok? Look, if you weren't so high-strung about this, you would hear that she's just messing around. Playing with him, if you wish. She's not interested in him. He's a jerk. Well, she might like that… but I doubt that's her fancy. Remember how she was all over you after your fight with Roxy? She likes you Noah. Just calm down and deal with Link's attitude. It'll blow over soon enough."

I sighed, and nodded. His words were true. I got what he was saying, and it calmed me. "Yea, I guess you're right Ric… thanks," I patted his shoulder, and then made my way up the vines.

**Ric's View**

_What did I just say! _I yelled at myself. _I'm an idiot! I mean, it was good of me to help Noah and all since we need him… but… I more-so like Reese myself! Din dang it I just gave her to Noah! What am I going to do now!_

I sighed, and slowly walked to the vines. Unlike Noah, I can keep my cool when beating myself in my head. But I was right… I have no chance with Reese now. She likes Noah and both him and Link like her. I just have to get some things in… maybe if I push my way up I can be next to her…

No, Noah will get suspicious. I just encouraged him to get her. If I pushed him away to get to Reese, he would kick my ass… I guess the only thing I can do is wait for an opening.

Climbing at a moderate pace, I made it to the top just quick enough to see Noah pass into the woods. Better catch up if I want any time with Reese soon.

**Noah's View**

Darkness again, a little longer then the past moments. Might be because I'm walking this time… but whatever. Now that my mind is calm, I can finally think straight and lead my group again. As I passed out the other end, I was struck with awe at the design of this mystical place.

The forest was divided into… well, squares. Small little patches of open grass surrounded by dirt walls and connected to other open areas by the log transitions. Above was a strange fog, littered with small glowing insects, glowing pollen-like objects, and ever-falling leaves stuck in the constant breeze.

Everyone was waiting for me in the first area, all gathered around Link. Seemed he was giving a little lesson on this "Lost Woods". I stood next to Reese and turned my attention towards Link.

"Ah, Noah. Glad you were finally able to join us. Get over your little temper-tantrum back there?" He said a horridly snotty tone. I took a deep breath and responded.

"I did not throw a tantrum, it was simply a little… internal conflict," I heard Ric walk casually behind us. He tried to squeeze between Reese and I, but I pushed him back, "Now, mind starting from the beginning of your lesson?"

"Well I do mind, but I love hearing myself talk so I'll begin again anyway. The Lost Woods is a dangerous place filled with wolfos, skull-children, stalfos, skulltulas, and most more of those shadow troops. Not only that, but one wrong turn can get you lost in the woods and you'll end up right back here," He stamped his foot to demonstrate. I was half excited and half scarred for upcoming fights. I took a deep breath as he continued.

"Now, to avoid getting lost, everyone stay close to me. There are a few areas here in the woods designed for purposes not aiding our goal so we don't want to get distracted. Follow close and be prepared to fight. Everyone ready?" We all nodded and gathered up what supplies we were carrying. From the direction we came in, we took a right and began the trek into the woods. Link took point, followed by me and Reese, then Ric and Roxy.

The second area sported a lower-altitude area, accessible by a ladder to the left. As Link told us, we ignored whatever was down there and headed left.

Upon entering the third area, we were so graciously met by a nice, large, grey wolfos. It looked at us with bright green eyes and snarled wickedly. Link stood up straight and drew his sword.

He lunged towards it and rolled behind it, the wolf quickly turning as well. I saw my opening and drew my own sword. I ran forward and, with a quick strike, cut off the wolfos's tail. Light red blood squirted from the stump that was left and quickly soaked into the dirt. The wolfos turned to me and I swung again, only to have it but up its front paws and stop my blade.

"The skin on its front paws is super thick! You can't break through it!" Link shouted, drawing the wolfos's attention. It turned and I prepared my sword to stab in in the center of the back. However, a knife whizzed past me before I could bring my sword down and hit the wolfos in the back of its skull. It slumped to the ground in its own bloody pool, and Reese casually strolled over and retrieved her knife.

"What? Oh, did you want to kill it? It was getting boring watching you guys," She said confidently and with a smile. I couldn't help smiling myself.

"Good job Reese, that was a nice kill," Link announced, jumping in front of me, "And Noah," He turned to me and took a step back next to Reese, "It would be best to not piss it off next time by cutting off its tail. Try to next time stab into its entire body, or hit the skull," I let out a quick burst of air in disbelief. He's criticizing my fighting when he didn't does shit but distract it!

"Fine, thanks for the tip," I said in my most sarcastic tone, "Let's get going. You lead the way, _buddy._" I added a bit of anger to that last word to show my displeasure. He just scoffed, turned, and continued by turning right. Reese and I cleaned ourselves and followed suit.

Next area held just a little surprise for us. Turns out the natives don't really like large groups of people traveling their woods. As we entered the area, we say little skull masks pop up above the stone wall in the trees. As Link walked out, he was pelted with pellets and the occasional dart. He let out a yell in Hylan and the masks dispersed. I laughed and Link turned to me red faced.

"What's so funny, huh? It wouldn't be so hilarious if it were you getting pelted with rocks from skull-children!" Link yelled. I kept laughing and he did nothing more than huff and turn away. He's just a load of hot air. I looked ahead of us a little and noticed a small pond with an odd stone protruding from it.

"Hey Link, what's that?" I said inquisitively.

"A pond. And if you can dive down deep enough, you can go in a small hole at the bottom and a current will take you to Zora Domain. I wouldn't try it if I were you. You'll probably drown," He said very tensely. He's pretty mad, so I decided to stop bugging him for the moment. We took a left to the next area.

We decided to stop for a moment and get something to eat, seeing as this area was clear and it's been quite some time since we last ate. Ric and Roxy brought out their packs and handed everyone some bread and cheese. Reese and I separated ourselves slightly from the group, both of us finding Link a little annoying and being able to rest our backs more comfortable. She wolfed down the bread, but I noticed her only picking at her cheese.

"Something wrong? I can't believe you're not hungry, even after all that bread," I asked as kindly as possible. She gave me a small smile and a short response.

"I love bread, but I only like certain cheeses,"

"Here, trade. This cheese is really filling and that's all I need," I handed her half my bread and she passed over her cheese. I felt like I scored some points when she talked after her meal.

"Thanks Noah. I appreciate it,"

"No problem," I said in return. I looked over and saw Ric's head turn quickly. Odd…

**Ric's View**

_Phew, Noah almost caught me. _I thought to myself as I picked at my bread and cheese. Reese just looked so pretty in the shade of the tree I just couldn't help staring… but I luckily caught myself before Noah did it for me. I snapped back to what Link was talking about.

"… and that's when I finally managed to catch up to the running man and deliver his bunny hood. He was weird, but just dumped rupees into my wallet. As a kid, a filled wallet was amazing to feel. Pretty damn heavy too," He shoved the rest of his food into his mouth and took one big swallow.

Pfft, he was a kid getting rupees shoved at him while I was out doing favors for locals, trying to get myself food. My dad was a drunk; my mom was nowhere to be found… money was so rare that I hung a green rupee in my room as my prized possession. Whatever… he's the Hero of Time anyway. It's his job to be fucking rich.

I stood up, brushed myself off, and gulped the last of my food. After helping Roxy up, Reese and Noah re-joined up and Link pointed straight ahead as our next destination.

Reese walked just a little faster than everyone else, and it seemed I was the only one trying to keep up with her. As we walked into the next clearing, I heard her gasp and the clang of iron in front of her.

"Shadows!" She yelled, and the grunts (As we decided to call them while we were eating. I heard that part) charged forward. One launched a spear right at Reese. Luckily I jumped and shoved her out of the way fast enough for the spear to harmlessly embed itself if the log. I landed on top of her and I flashed a quick smile.

"I saved your life, huh?" I said, grinning.

"Yea, now get up. Please, we're kinda in the middle of fighting," She said hurriedly, squirming underneath me. I wanted to stay and talk a while, but my good nature mad me get up right away.

"Yea… sorry about that," She then gave me a quick hug and then patted my shoulder.

"Don't worry. And thanks," She said happily and drew her knives towards the grunts. I swore I felt my heart flutter.

**Noah's View**

As soon as I heard Reese scream and the thud of her and Ric hitting the ground, my heard skipped a beat and I charged forward, sword ready and eyes filled with anger. There were four, as I've been hearing them called, grunts in total and three were armed with short sword. I noticed Link to my left and Roxy to my right, just a little behind me. I confronted the one in front, dispatching him quickly by driving my sword through its chest. The armor quickly fell to pieces and I saw Link's and Roxy's fights.

Link had to step back to dodge the blow from his enemy, but finished it off quickly by decapitating it.

Roxy met her foe's blade, pushing it away and diagonally slicing the grunt, causing the top half of it to slip off the rest.

Reese, now up and unharmed, dashed past me and jump-stabbed the final grunt who was disarmed. It must have been his spear that nearly hit her. I had a flash of rage but stopped it, telling myself that Reese was alright anyway. Link turned towards us and spoke.

"Reese, try and be more careful. We don't need you dead. Let's push on; we're almost to the meadow."

I saw Reese with a shocked look on her face, but she seemed to disregard it quickly enough. She must like him…. There's no other way she would push that off so easily. I took a deep breath and continued following Link and we took a left.

Again, this area was empty. However there were obviously boot prints from other grunts that passed through here earlier. I was half worried for a moment but quickly remembered our skills and pushed off that fear.

"Ok everyone, all we need to do is take a right here and we're at the Sacred Forest Meadow. We get through the meadow, and the Forest Temple is right there. Now the Meadow is more maze-like and filled with Moblins. They are big pig monsters with spears and can do a lot of damage in a short amount of time so watch out," Link informed us and walked somewhat quickly into the meadow. Ric shrugged and followed suit and along with Roxy.

I turned to Reese and asked her, "You ready for this? We're just about at the first temple. The first step to getting rid of Gannondorf!" I tried to sound just a little excited.

"Yea, I can't wait to make him pay for what he's done. Asshole of Time, you better move out of the way; its Reese time to get revenge!" And with that, she ran through to the meadow. I smiled at her enthusiasm and followed.

Upon entering the meadow, I quickly noticed the high dirt walls, along with a set of stairs and a pathway some ways in the distance. Looking at my group I noticed two sets of armor at Link's feet. Show off.

"Hey everyone, listen up! Stay close and follow my lead!" Link yelled, but I simply rolled my eyes as I made my way to the opening in the wall.

I strolled past Link who was distracted with informing Reese, Roxy, and Ric about the "little maze". Making it to the entrance, I peered to the left. The paths weren't too wide, only enough for two people shoulder-to-shoulder. Down the path just a few paces was an out of place pool of water. Strange, I wonder who put it there.

I heard clinking armor to my right, so I turned.

There stood a giant, half-naked, pig beast armed with a spear. He grunted and charged towards me with his weapon out. I let out a yell and ducked my head back away from the corridor.

The pig whizzed past me, nearly falling in the water but stopping just in time. He looked around a moment, confused on where I was. I took this moment to take action. One quick kick on its back on it went tumbling into the water. It sunk quickly, but to make sure it didn't come back I stabbed in the water a few times. Slowly the water grew to scarlet red.

"Hey, next time wait for the rest of us. You could have gotten yourself killed there!" Link yelled.

I rolled my eyes and replied, "I learn best from experience Mr. Hero of Time. Look, the thing is dead so let's get going. I'm tired of your lectures. We're not children; we can figure things out ourselves!"

"Fine then, if you want it that way you can have it! Once we get to the temple, I'll wait outside for you guys. If you make it out alive I'll quit the speeches."

"Deal, now let's get moving," I walked into the now safe corridor and took the correct path; to the right. I heard everyone behind me follow suit.

Following the path to the left, there was only a small length of path before turning once more to the left. A few more paces, and I could hear the jingling of Moblin armor. I stopped at the corner and stuck my arm out, blocking anyone's path.

"Hey Noah, what's wrong?" Reese asked, pushing my arm aside and walking forward.

I quickly grabbed her and pulled her back, whispering, "Shh! The Moblins, remember?"

"Oh yea…" She sighed and stepped back. Just then, the huge body of the Moblin appeared, stared at the wall for a moment, then turned and walked the other way. Their big skulls must hold tiny brains.

This time, Roxy pushed through announcing, "Move aside buddy, I'm sick of staring at your back silently. Let me do something for once!" She ran out of sight towards the Moblin. There was a squeal, thud, and then silence. Roxy walked back triumphantly and announced, "Now let's get a move on. This is going to slow for my taste. No more stealth, let's just kill these things!"

Reese giggled and sported a small grin, and I swear I heard Ric even give a small laugh. Looks like the group has spoken, in their silent ways. "Alright, sounds good to me if you're up to it," I stated, and Roxy gave me a happy nod. She took point and we followed.

Link however, wasn't happy with this. "Hey, Noah, aren't you supposed to be the leader? She's taking your position! Get it back!" He whispered. I shook my head.

"No, there's nothing wrong with letting everyone have a little fun every once in a while. Hell, if Roxy thinks she can get us there faster, it's worth a shot," I felt confident with my… I guess I can really call them friends now.

"Fine, but I say it's a bad idea," He turned from me and walked ahead, leaving me in the back with Ric.

**Roxy's View**

_Finally I get to do something other than follow-the-leader! _I said to myself. I was pretty happy. I quickly continued down the path and took a right. More path, then a second right. The Moblin didn't look too happy, staring me down.

I smirked as he prepared is spear, and I felt Reese bump into my back and walk back quickly. I drew my scimitar and held it out. Dirt flew out from the back of the Moblin's feet as he began to charge.

It wasn't more than a second before the Moblin's spear reached me but I was ready. I swatted the spear away and drove my sword deep into the Moblin's gut, ending him quickly. It was almost… funny, feeling his weight shift and slowly slide off my blade. I let out the tiniest giggle which got me a weird look from Reese.

I picked up the spear off the ground and continued forward. Not too far was the next turn; a left. With that, another shard left and I walked right up to a pool of water.

Thinking about it, these pools are quite out of place. Quite frankly I don't know why they're here at all. I pressed myself close to the wall of my right, got as close as I could to the water, and peered to the right down the path.

The Moblin was turned around, and that was perfect. In a swift motion I slid over the water and launched the spear at the Moblin. My throw made me realize why I never got accepted as an archer.

The spear shot clear past it's head, but imbedded it's self into the _next_ Moblin, who was just casually strolling by. Lucky me!

Well, not so lucky that my original target now turned and readied his spear, and I was hardly prepared. In only a second he charged and I could already feel the cool metal of his spear piercing through my stomach…

_SPLASH! _There was a loud splash behind me, and the Moblin collapsed at my feet with a knife in its gut. I allowed the cool water droplets to cover my back before turning around to see who my savior was.

As expected, Reese was treading water and Noah quickly ran to her aid. I smiled and could only utter one word, "W-w-why?"

She turned to Noah and grabbed his extended hand. I walked over and helped her over the gap and she said to me, "I'm not going to lose a friend this early in an adventure. I had the chance to save you, so I did. Don't ask questions." She patted my cheek and walked ahead. I could only smile in response.

Noah approached me as the others moved on ahead. He gently wiped some blood off my face and said, "You've done enough, and I thank you for it. Stay in the back and relax now. We've got it." He patted my shoulder and walked away. So this is what it's like having friends… Real friends.

**Noah's View**

Walking past Roxy, I took a right to see we've come to the end of the maze. Everyone gathered at the base of the stairs until I joined them. Ric turned to me and said, "Hey, looks like I've been the only one to now do anything. Hope I get my chance soon… well, it's nice seeing everyone being happy doing something."

"You'll get your turn soon enough Ric, don't worry." I tried to sound supportive, but I was slightly suspicious of him for just a moment. I shrugged it off after thinking it over. He was just a friend.

We climbed the stairs, which were shorter then I had imagined, to find an odd sight. It was a long narrow pathway, only the dirt walls went up at least 30 feet. But that was just the design. It was what was in the path that was odd.

There was a corpse of a giant Moblin, three times the size of a normal one. Surrounding the corpse was five or so grunts along with a brighter-armored commander. They heard us climbing the stairs and turned when we reached the top.

"Hey, you there! Leave now! This is none of your business!" The commander yelled, and his troops gathered in front of him. I reached for my sword but Ric stopped my hand.

"No need Noah. A long narrow path is perfect for me." He gave a small smile and notched his bow. Quicker than I would have thought he could, Ric launched two arrows which took out two of the grunts.

The commander was obviously baffled and took a step back in shock. He yelled, "Troops, charge! No mercy for these!" The remaining three grunts followed orders by drawing short swords and charging.

Ric just laughed and yelled back, "Come! Come to your doom then!" He notched two arrows and shot them at the same time, both hitting and killing the two front grunts. The other one was momentarily stopped as the armor of his friends fell to pieces, and that time was enough for Ric to notch and launch a third arrow at the last grunt.

I was surprised myself at Ric's bloodlust and speed. I felt my jaw drop just a little as he slowly walked closer to the commander. He stopped ten paces away from him and let loose one more arrow into the man's chest. An obvious heart shot.

"What are you all waiting for? I see the temple ahead, just past these stairs!" Ric said, proceeding to run up the final flight of stairs. Link and Roxy quickly followed, obviously unmoved by Ric's display. Me and Reese stayed back a second, so I turned to her.

"You surprised by Ric's sudden behavior too?" I said, bringing her back down to earth.

She shook her head and replied quickly, "Yea, yea. He's been acting very strange lately. A lot of mood swings," With that, she walked ahead over the armor and over the dead man. I followed also, careful to not disturb the dead.

I slowly made my way up the stairs up to the final level of the meadow. There, the first thing that caught my eye was a small stone platform in the shape of a hexagon. There was a design of some triangles (Which I assumed to be the Triforce I kept hearing about) and what looked like a medallion. Link and Reese stood atop the platform and looked at the surrounding area.

Directly ahead there was a tall stone building which wrapped around the area we were in. The entrance seemed to be about three men up, making it inaccessible to an unprepared adventurer. To the left entrance was a tree that appeared dead and sported a single thick branch hanging over the entrance. And to the right was a short stump perfect for sitting as Ric found out.

"So, this it?" I called out to Link. He turned and nodded. However, instead of telling us how to get into the temple, he simply pointed to the sky. Turned out it was getting dark and my fatigue finally hit me.

"Best get your rest here while you can. I can sense… something different about the temple. I remember the evil emanating from it last time I was here… but this is different. Stronger. Darker. And a deep feeling of change," Link said in a very worried tone. He quickly changed back to his usual snotty attitude with, "Glad I'm not going in there again.

Deciding not to get worked up again, I simply gathered my supplies and set out my mat. Just then I noticed the sky darkening past its usual forest fog. I shot a glance at Ric who proceeded to find a patch of wet grass and start a fire. It took him only a moment, seeing as there were plenty of branches lying around. We all gathered near the fire except for Ric, who set up near the stump. I, lying next to Reese's mat, turned to her and started a small conversation.

"So, how do you feel about this adventure so far? Ready to take on a temple?" I said encouragingly.

"No, not at all. I was perfectly fine as an ally thug with Rose. But… this is fun I guess. It's nice having… these new friends," She seemed tense, and she gave off an aura of not wanting to talk. She turned away from me and muttered, "Good night Noah."

"Alright, good night Reese." I muttered back, and I turned away to talk to Roxy and Link. Roxy was happily warming her hands by the fire and Link, the only one without something to lay on, was sitting on the stone platform.

"So, Noah, what are you making out from what Link had said? Eviler and darker than before, sounds like a challenge. You ready?" Roxy said with a smile, not looking up from the fire.

I smiled and replied, "Yes, whatever it takes to get rid of Gannondorf. Even though I've never heard of him before, what he's already done is enough to make me want to kill him. If this is what has to be done, so be it," I sounded more confident then I actually am.

"Wow, you sound like Link did, a couple years ago. About ten to be exact," She leaned closer to me and whispered, "Before all this Hero of Time crap started getting to his head. He used to be a quiet guy. And pretty cute too. Now he has an "I'm better then everyone" attitude, so everyone started leaving him alone. After the fateful battle with Gannondorf, he stopped coming to Castle Town. We just assumed he was retired to the forest. When he came to visit the guards one time, we realized how glad we were that he left."

Well that was quite some story there. Guess I'm not the only one who hates him and that made me feel just a little better. It was almost an excuse to hate him more, and I liked it.

"Well, I'll put out the fire now. Seems we're all getting pretty tired," Roxy announced. Link and I nodded in agreement.

"I'll keep watch, just in case any grunts decide to pay us a visit in the night," Link said, turning his head at us for a moment then back to the stairs.

"Sounds good, just wake me up when you get tired," Roxy said, laying her head in the grass. The grass here was thick enough to be used as rests. I was just a little worried about bugs.

"No need, I've gone longer without sleep. See you all in the morning," He said, not looking away from the stairs. He seemed to be locked on to something.

"Fine then. Goodnight," Roxy said, and she closed her eyes. She fell asleep pretty quickly. The full force of my fatigue his me now, and I could barely keep my eyes open. Link spoke one more time before I faded into rest.

"Can you believe we have actually been awake for two days? Remember when we sat down to eat? The fog was so thick that the light from the insects actually replicated day. It happens sometimes… the fog here is thinner, allowing us to see night and making us mentally tired… Hyrule sure is strange sometimes…" Either he faded off, or I passed out. Probably both.

**Link's View**

Sitting around alone at night in front of the forest temple… exactly what I had been planning to do today. I guess it's better than doing nothing at home all the time.

And that guy Noah… he's got it out for me. Something about him… he's letting off the aura of out to get me. I'm not worried though. Hell, I'm the Hero of Time. I'm invincible! Hero's never die!

Whatever, I need to stay focused. I peered down the stairs again. Nothing. I doubt anything will come…. I need to make sure though. I don't want Gannondorf to have the upper hand.

A glint of moonlight caught my eye. I looked up but saw nothing. Strange. I looked back to the stairs and saw the glint again, this time twice. I picked up my Hylan Iron sword and walked down the steps towards the glinting. It happened again, twice like before. It was at the bottom of the steps and moving.

By the time I reached the middle of the corridor, I finally learned the origins of the glinting. It was two grunts, sent off to scout ahead.

"Hey, get out of here!" I called out; loud enough for them but quiet enough to not wake my friends. The grunts simply hummed and drew their weapons; one had a spear and the other a short sword.

I ran forward and targeted the one with a spear. He jabbed and I stopped quick enough to avoid getting skewered. He pulled his spear back and prepared another, but not before I rolled underneath him and drove my sword straight up his crotch. There was no scream, only the clanging of armor as it fell on top of me.

I could sense the other shadow becoming worried for his own fate. It took a step back, but then it's "programming" made it step back into the fight. He swung his weapon at me, just close enough to cut some of the fabric of my tunic. "Hey, watch the tunic!" I said, and jabbed at him to force a falter.

It worked, and he dropped his guard for just a moment. A moment enough for me to give a quick horizontal slice through his gut, parting his chest from his legs. The spirit faded out and the armor fell. I smiled at victory.

Another glint; they had a friend. Another grunt was just about to turn the corner, but I thought quickly enough to stop him. Just before he turned, I grabbed the spear out of the pile of armor and tossed it at the grunt, piercing through his back and ending his spirit-life.

Triumphantly, I marched back to camp and sat back in my spot on the platform. I smiled, leaned back, and noticed the rays of light coming through the fog. Morning already and I heard Noah and Reese both stir. I allowed my eyes to rest… for just a moment…

**Noah's View**

I awoke gently, my grass pillow being extremely comfortable. I stretched, and looked over at Link. Asleep… so much for staying guard… lazy ass. Whatever, I'm up and awake. I decided to make everyone some food before waking them up.

Bread and some dried fruit for breakfast, yum. Better than nothing I guess, so I choked my helping down before proceeding to awake everyone, starting with Rick and ending with Link, Roxy and Reese between. Each got up slowly but rested besides Link who awoke with a jump.

"Guard duty, huh? I'll remember who to trust next time for that job," I mocked Link. I was still pretty angry with him.

"You know what," He started very angrily, but calmed himself before continuing, "You're right… I must just be unused to staying up all night. Next time, someone else can do it."

"Glad you agree," I simply stated, and allowed everyone to grab their breakfast. It was simple, and everyone was done in a matter of minutes. I looked over at Reese while she ate, and she seemed to be happily enjoying the fruit. I sighed happily at my correct choices. Then I turned back to Link to speak business.

"Now, Link, our agreement? You stay outside while we head into the temple?"

"Yep, just as we planned," He dug in his pockets for a moment and pulled put a small key and a length of rope, "Here, the key is for inside and the rope is to get in. Good luck."

"Alright," I took the supplies and turned to the rest of the group, "everyone ready?"

Ric and Roxy nodded in agreement, Roxy giving a small, "Mhmm!" in response.

Reese, however, had crammed bread into her mouth beforehand and tuned to me in shock. She held her finger up, to signal me to pause. She proceeded to quickly gulp down the bread and replied, "Ok, I'm good… yes, I'm ready!"

I smiled because that was just so darn cute, and I walked over to the entrance. I pondered for a moment at Link's instructions before coming up with a plan. I took the rope and tossed it up, lassoing it around the branch securely. Without hesitation, I proceeded to climb up the rope all the way to the top and planting my feet safely on the stone platform. I stared the door down for a moment before turning and watching the rest of my group follow suit up the rope.

I nodded, and everyone nodded back. I gave a quick smile before saying, "Here we are, at the first temple. Here we go…" I faded off, and turned confidently at the door and opened it wide.


End file.
